In the Dark Kingdom, Queen Beryl was alone in a separate room kneeling in front of what appeared to be a strange cocoon. It was in the middle of a giant skull with its mouth open and looked like a big egg yolk that was huge in appearance. Queen Beryl held a green orb of energy in her hands, representing the energy she received from Jadeite and Nephrite.
"Awaken, Great Ruler," she commanded. "To you, I offer this vital energy. Hear my plea and awaken once more. Arise! Oh, Great One!"
She then blasted the cocoon using the energy in her hands, the object absorbing everything Queen Beryl gave. A few moments of silence passed, then the yolk began to glow and shift as a heartbeat resounded, followed by a voice coming from inside the cocoon.
"So... it seems that the energy from the humans has stirred me from my long sleep," the cocoon spoke.
"Yes, Great One," said Queen Beryl. "How long we have waited for this day. Truly an auspicious moment!"
"But... is it not enough, Queen Beryl," the cocoon said. "I can feel myself being drawn back into a deep sleep once again."
"I see," spoke Queen Beryl.
"You must find the Legendary Silver Crystal at once," spoke the cocoon. "It is essential to obtain it; otherwise, my resurrection will be impossible!"
"We're searching for it as we speak Great One, but we do not know where it is," said Queen Beryl.
"Then you must revive the Dark Kingdom's strongest warriors," said the cocoon. "The Seven Great Monsters. If you do so along with the Rainbow Crystals, only then will the Silver Crystal shine brightly to be found."
Queen Beryl was pleased as she bowed respectfully. "Yes, of course, Great One!" she said. "It shall be done!"
In the real world, in the town of Juuban, Usagi was running as fast as her feet could carry her with Harusuke and Luna right behind her, Luna carrying a small pink bag in her mouth.
"Come on, Harusuke! Hurry up! We're going to be late for school!" yelled Usagi.
"Man, this is the third time this week!" complained Harusuke. "Why haven't you gotten yourself an alarm clock yet?!"
"Usagi! You forgot your lunch!" yelled Luna as he ran alongside. "Make sure you don't forget it!"
"Thanks, Luna!" panted Usagi. "Make sure you bring it with you!"
Then there was trouble. Usagi had just turned around a corner when she slammed into something hard, causing her to fall flat on her butt on the ground. Usagi rubbed her behind in pain as she sat up as Luna and Harusuke immediately went to her to check if she was alright.
"Usagi? Are you alright?" asked Harusuke.
"I'm alright," replied the twin-tailed blonde. "I'm sorry for bumping into-"
She was about to apologize to whoever she bumped, but then she stopped, and her face immediately paled, as did Luna's. Even Harusuke couldn't help but gulp a little. The person that Usagi bumped into was a man wearing a purple shirt with black pants. With him were two muscular men, one having an orange button-down with blue pants and sunglasses, and the other having an aqua-colored tank top with black pants and shoes. The one who Usagi bumped into held his leg in pain.
"You broke my leg!" he wailed. "I swear I heard it snap!"
The two muscular men glared at Usagi. Then one the with the orange button-down sunglasses went up to her scowling.
"Hey! What're you going to do about this, young lady?" he demanded. "Maybe if you fork over your money, it'll make him feel better."
Usagi immediately squealed in fear as she hid behind Harusuke. Her brother then stood bravely in front of the men.
"Hey! Back off, bub! If you mess with my sister, you're messing with me!" he spoke.
The thug in orange laughed. "What are you gonna do about runt?" he mocked. "You're like a twig compared to me."
Harusuke glared, not wanting to back down, but he knew that there was no way he could take on all three of them at once.
Then they heard a voice.
"She said she was sorry. So why don't you guys back off?"
Everyone immediately turned around, and there stood a young girl. She was tall, a few inches taller than Harusuke, had long brown hair tied in a ponytail with long bangs, and wore a school uniform that had a long brownish-green skirt with a pair of high heels that matched. She also had pink rose earrings on each of her ears.
"I saw the whole, and even someone as dumb as you three could see that she barely bumped into you," the girl continued. "Not to mention that you were trying to con a girl and beat up her brother. That's pretty low, even for you guys."
"What'd you say?!" growled the man that wore orange, now glaring dangerously at the girl.
"No one talks to us like that," said the man in the aqua tank top. "Not even a girl like you!"
The man in the aqua tank top reached out to grab her shoulder when suddenly the girl immediately grabbed his hand. Before he or anyone else had a chance to react, she threw him over her shoulder and slammed him into the concrete ground stunning him. The man in orange then charged at the girl with his fist raised. The girl saw the attack coming and tilted her head, dodging the blow and at the same time gave the man in orange a sharp knee right in his stomach, knocking the wind out of him and knocking him out. Usagi and Harusuke were amazed while the leader of three was shaking in fear for what the girl had just done. Then he took off, running as fast as his legs could carry him.
"Awesome..." murmured Usagi.
"She... she took them both out in seconds!" gasped Harusuke.
The girl then looked at the Tsukino siblings and smiled kindly. "Are you two OK?" she asked.
"Y-yes! We're fine!" stammered Usagi.
"Good," smiled the girl. "You two take care now."
The girl flashed one more smile as she walked away, her earrings glistening in the sun. Usagi and Harusuke, and even Luna were amazed as the girl disappeared.
As the girl went on her way, she couldn't help but look back at Harusuke in particular. When she did, her cheeks flushed bright pink.
"Wow! That guy looks so cute!" she thought. "He looks just like the guy that broke my heart!"
Back in the Dark Kingdom in the throne room, Queen Beryl had summoned Zoisite as well as Malachite and explained what the Great Ruler said.
"When the Seven Great Monsters revive, and the rainbow crystals brought together," she said. "The Legendary Silver Crystal will shine brightly and be found. Those were the words of the Great Ruler."
"I remember the Seven Great Monsters," spoke Malachite. "Long ago, they were our most powerful monster allies, but our enemy sealed them away."
"Your memory serves you well, Malachite," said Queen Beryl. "The legendary Seven Great Monsters were our most powerful in the Dark Kingdom. Until the day we suffered a great loss to Queen Serenity. She used the Silver Crystal to seal away each of the seven into separate fragments of the Silver Crystal itself and then banished them to Earth. Those are the seven fragments known as the Rainbow Crystals."
"And what of the Seven Monsters?" asked Zoisite. "What became of them?"
"They lost their memory of what they once were and have been reborn as humans," said Malachite solemnly.
"I see..." said Zoisite thoughtfully. "So if we remove these Rainbow Crystals from the reincarnated humans, will those crystals lead us to the Silver Crystal?"
"Correct," smiled Queen Beryl. "And what's even better is that those who have their crystals removed will immediately reincarnate to what they once were."
Queen Beryl then held out her hand over her wand, and it began to glow white. Something came out of it, and it flung right at Zoisite, causing the young man to catch it in his hand. It was the Dark Crystal. The same Dark Crystal that Nephrite had previously owned before Zoisite had taken it.
"I've modified The Dark Crystal to react only to the Rainbow Crystals," Queen Beryl explained to Zoisite. "Use it well, Zoisite."
"Thank you, my queen," smiled Zoisite.
He then held out his hand outwards, making the Dark Crystal levitate and spin. Finally, the crystal stopped spinning, and its tip began to glow and a strange vortex shot out from it, revealing an image of a boy. He was young, wore a white t-shirt with an orange jacket on top, glasses, and a blue baseball cap backward.
Usagi and Harusuke were walking outside in the courtyard at school, hoping to enjoy their lunch period. Usagi was humming a merry tune as she skipped along.
"Lunchtime! Lunchtime! My stomach's growling like a big old bear!" she sang.
"Well, that's original," chuckled Harusuke. "You should be a songwriter Usagi."
Then as they rounded a tree, Usagi stopped and gasped, causing Harusuke to stop too.
"Usagi? What is it?" he asked.
"Harusuke, look!" Usagi said pointing.
Harusuke looked, and sure enough, by the bush was the girl that helped Harusuke and Usagi earlier this morning, sitting all by herself eating her lunch.
"Hey! It's that girl with the rose earrings!" he murmured.
"I know, but what's she doing here?" wondered Usagi.
As the two looked back at the girl, Umino suddenly appeared from out of nowhere.
"Hey there, you guys! Whatcha doing?" he asked.
Usagi and Harusuke screamed a little, feeling startled, and the two immediately grabbed Umino by the collar, ready to tear him a new one.
"What is the matter with you, Umino?!" Harusuke spoke crossly.
"Yeah! Don't scare us like that!" Usagi added angrily.
"Calm down, you two. I only came here to tell you about that girl you're both watching," said Umino. "She's a transfer student who just joined Class 6 today. Her name is Makoto Kino. She's powerful, and word on the street was that she got kicked out of her old school for fighting, so if I were you two, I'd keep my distance. If you're not careful, she might-"
Then when Umino looked back at the Tsukino siblings, Harusuke was still standing there listening, but Usagi had mysteriously disappeared.
"What the-! Where'd Usagi go?!" asked Umino.
"She's over there," replied Harusuke pointing to the bush where Makoto was.
Umino looked and was horrified to see Usagi tip-toeing towards her.
"Usagi, what are you doing?!" Umino yelled/whispered. "I told you that girl is dangerous!"
"Umino, first and foremost, we are not stalking her," said Harusuke. "Secondly, you're jumping to conclusions. That girl saved us earlier today from thugs, so those things you told us are probably just rumors."
He then walked over to Usagi, much to Umino's shock. When he and Usagi were close enough, they could see the contents of Makoto's lunch. There were rice balls, fried pork, and even a couple of vegetables. She even had a separate box in the shape of a heart that contained sliced apples, strawberries, and oranges. Usagi couldn't help but drool with hunger from the sight of them.
"Wow... her lunch looks so cute and yummy!" she whispered. "I can almost taste it!"
Even Harusuke had to admit that the food looked delicious. "Yeah... it makes me wonder where she got all that from."
Then Makoto suddenly snapped her head around, startled but on guard. "Who's there?!" she demanded gruffly.
Harusuke and Usagi jumped, a bit startled by Makoto's expression.
"Um, hello again!" greeted Usagi sheepishly.
"Yeah. Hey there," said Harusuke embarrassingly.
Makoto's face then softened as soon she recognized the Tsukino siblings. "Hey! It's you two. It's great to see you both again," she said. "So you both go to school here too, huh?"
"Indeed we do," said Usagi brightly. "I'm Usagi Tsukino, and this is my big brother Harusuke."
"Nice to meet you," greeted Harusuke politely.
"N-Nice to meet you guys too," smiled Makoto as her cheeks flushed pink again. Then she moved over. "Do you two wanna join me?"
Usagi immediately sat down next to Makoto. "Sure!" she said eagerly. "We would love to join you!"
Harusuke then took a seat on the other side of Makoto. "Thank you for having us," he spoke politely. "And thank you for saving my sister and me earlier."
"A-Anytime!" Makoto spoke as she twiddled her thumbs. "Gl-Glad to help you out."
Harusuke then noticed Makoto acting strangely and was a bit puzzled. "Is something wrong, Ms. Kino?" he asked. "Your cheeks are looking a bit red there."
Makoto furiously shook her head. "No! It's nothing! I'm fine!" she squeaked nervously. "Don't worry about me!"
Makoto then took notice of Usagi drooling over the sight of her rice ball. She then held out a rice ball to Usagi.
"You want one?" she asked.
"Well... I'm not a big eater, but if you insist..." said Usagi as she took the riceball and took a bite. "Yummy!"
Makoto then held out one to Harususke, shyly looking away. "Here. You want one too?"
"Sure. Thank you very much," said Harusuke as he took the rice ball, also taking a bite. "Wow! Delicious!"
"Th-thank you very much," smiled Makoto. "You know, I'm happy you two came along. For some reason, everyone at school here seems to be afraid to talk to me."
"Well, you saved Usagi and me from a couple of thugs; of course, rumors are gonna start flying around," said Harusuke. "But don't worry. We're on your side."
"Yup! Don't worry about a thing, Mako!" added Usagi.
Makoto looked at Usagi, a bit surprised.
"Um... is it OK if I call you Makoto?" asked Usagi.
Makoto nodded. "Yeah. I don't mind."
Usagi smiled. "Great! Anyway, Mako, the food you have for your lunch is delicious! Your Mom must be an excellent cook!"
Makoto then blushed. "Well... actually, I made all this myself."
Harusuke and Usagi stared at Makoto, their eyes filled with surprise.
"You made all of this by yourself?! That's amazing!" said Harusuke.
"Yeah! No kidding! You gotta teach us how to make these!" said Usagi. "Or you can make them for us..."
Harusuke glared. "Usagi! Don't be so greedy!" he scolded.
Usagi laughed while she stuck out her tongue. "I was just kidding," she giggled.
Umino, who hadn't left, had seen everything. He could not believe it.
"Unbelievable! Usagi and Harusuke can make friends with anyone!" he muttered.
After school, Usagi and Harusuke took Makoto to the Game Center. On the way there, they talked a little until they arrived.
"So Mako, how come you're not wearing our school uniform?" wondered Usagi.
"What I'm wearing now suits me better," replied Makoto.
"That makes sense," spoke Harusuke. "It does suit you. It matches your earrings."
Mako blushed a little. "Thanks, Harusuke."
They soon came to the Game Center and entered it. Usagi looked around, looking for a certain someone there, but he was nowhere around.
"Aw... It looks like Motoki's not here today," she grumped.
"Maybe he has the day off or something," said Harusuke.
"Who's Motoki?" asked Makoto. "Is he your sister's second older brother or something?"
Usagi almost fell over in surprise while Harusuke shook his head.
"Not really. Motoki is a guy that works here at the Game Crown and is a good friend of ours," he explained. "Although... I guess if you think about it, he's kind of like a brother since he's always helping out Usagi and me whenever we need it."
"Come on, Mako! Please don't listen to him! Motoki's not like that!" said Usagi indignantly. "Motoki is a special guy! And he's - well - he's..."
She began to blush madly thinking about Motoki, but Harusuke interrupted her by poking her shoulder.
"Um... Usagi. If you're talking to Mako, she's over there," he said.
He then pointed to Makoto, playing the Sailor V game. Usagi fell over in surprise once again while Harusuke chuckled, sweatdropping. Then, Ami and Rei entered the Game Center with Ami carrying Luna in her arms.
"Hey, Usagi. Harusuke," she said. "So this is where you two were."
"Hey, Rei. Ami," greeted Harusuke. "What's up?"
"Is there something wrong?" asked Usagi.
"Luna was just telling us that she's concerned about that girl over there," explained Ami, motioning over to Mako.
"Who? Mako?" wondered Usagi. "Don't worry. Luna's worrying too much."
"Yeah. Mako's a nice person. She saved Usagi and me today from some thugs earlier," said Harusuke. "Come on; we'll introduce you."
Usagi and Harusuke then led their friends to Mako, who had gotten a game over.
"Darn it! How could I lose that one!" she complained.
"Hey, Mako. We want you to meet some friends of ours," Harusuke spoke. Then he introduced her. "This is Makoto Kino. She just transferred to our Middle School today."
Makoto then stood up and smiled. "Nice to meet you," she greeted.
Ami and Rei were surprised by how tall Makoto was, but they greeted her back. "N-nice to meet you too," they said.
Usagi then took her turn with introductions. "Mako, that's Ami, the smart one, and Rei... she's the mean one."
Rei looked at Usagi. "I'm sorry, who are you calling the mean one?" she asked with a hint of venom in her voice.
"I said you were," Usagi spoke.
Rei then got closer to Usagi, seeming to be angrier. "I... didn't you that time. What did you say I was?"
"The mean one," Usagi spoke.
Harusuke pinched his nose. "And here we go..." he groaned.
Rei was now very angry. "And just what year, month, week, day, time, hour, minute, and second had I ever been mean to you?!" she yelled.
"You're being mean to me right now!" Usagi shouted back. "That's what being mean is!"
Makoto smiled. "How nice. You both get along so well," she said.
"No way!" said Usagi and Rei at the same time.
"As soon as we see each other, she starts an argument every time!" said Rei.
"I do not!" countered Usagi.
"You do so!" Rei argued back.
"But just started it right now, Rei," sighed Harusuke. "I swear, can't you two get along for at least a few seconds?"
"Well, you know what they say," said Makoto. "The more you argue, the closer you are."
Rei and Usagi stared dumbly at Makoto for what she said while Harusuke and Ami laughed.
"That's a good one, Makoto," chuckled Ami. "She got you two on that one."
Rei and Usagi didn't answer, both glaring at each other, sticking out their tongues, and turning away from each other in a huff. Makoto then took notice of Luna and scratched her under her chin, causing the cat to meow and purr in delight.
"How cute!" Makoto laughed as she continued to service Luna.
"Oh! That's Luna, our cat," explained Usagi. "She's a black cat with a crescent bald spot on her forehead, so she's pretty special. She lives at our place."
Then, the group heard some people wowing and oohing in amazement and saw some people gathering around a giant crane game admiring a young man playing who also had a large box of toys he won. It was the same man that the Dark Kingdom identified as a holder of a Rainbow Crystal, but no one knew about this just yet. The young man inserted another coin and started playing again. Feeling rather curious, Usagi's group decided to watch too. The young man directed the crane over to a particular toy. He lowered the crane, and then just when the crane opened, and without anyone noticing, he tapped the glass, placing her palm on it. The toy seemed to shoot up into the claw just as it clamped on it and then dropped the toy into the opening, much to everyone's amazement.
"Wow! He got another one!" exclaimed a boy.
"He's good!" said another.
Harusuke and Usagi then heard one of their classmates, Yumi.
"Hey there, you two!" said Yumi. "Did you two see that?"
"Yeah, we did," said Usagi. "Who is that guy?"
"That guy's named Joe, but everyone calls him 'Joe the Crane Game Troll,' " explained Yumi. "
"Crane Game Troll?" puzzled Harusuke. "Why do people call him that? Because he's good at crane games?"
"Exactly! He's practically a genius at those games," said Yumi. "I've also heard that every single stuffed toy that he sets his sights on, he gets! He's got hundreds of them!"
"Wow... that's nuts," murmured Usagi. "Don't you think so, Mako?"
Makoto didn't answer. Usagi and Harusuke looked at her, wondering why, but they were surprised to see that Makoto was in some sort of a trance staring right at Joe.
"He's just like him..." she murmured dreamily.
"What're you talking about?" asked Usagi.
Makoto didn't respond. She just continued to stare at Joe, not taking her eyes off of him.
Usagi then waved her hand in front of her eyes, trying to snap her out of her trace. "Hey! Mako! Snap out of it!" she said. "Earth to Mako! Come in, Mako!"
But it was no use. Makoto didn't budge, nor did she come to her senses.
"What got into her?" wondered Usagi.
"Who knows?" said Harusuke. "Although, she reminds me of you whenever you think about Tuxedo Mask or Motoki."
Later that day, Joe walked home with a bag of his recent winnings slung on his back. Then suddenly, someone appeared before him in a blizzard of petals. It was Zoisite.
"Well, well," he smirked. "Looks like I found you."
Joe jumped, dropping his bag of toys, feeling startled. "Wh-who are you?!" he demanded.
"There's no need to answer that," said Zoisite. "This will only take a moment."
He then summoned the Dark Crystal from his hand, pointing it at Joe. The crystal began to glow, emitting a strange frequency. Joe then felt a weird pressure inside his body, mostly coming from the center of his chest, making him yell in agony. Then, in the center of his chest, a strange hole opened, and in it was a red crystal.
"Stop it!" screamed Joe as he was in more agony than before.
But Zoisite smirked with triumph, and he was just about to take the crystal from his body when he heard a voice.
"Stop that right now! It's not nice to bully people that are weaker than you!"
Zoisite looked to his right, and there standing a few feet away from him, was Makoto.
"Damn it!" he cursed as he closed his hand, hiding the Dark Crystal. "I'll make you regret from interring, girl!"
Makoto rushed in between them, protecting Joe, still reeling in agony. Then she dashed towards Zoisite throwing a flurry of punches at him.
Zoisite dodged each and everyone with ease and smirked cockily. "And what was that supposed to be?" he asked coolly. "How barbaric."
"I'll admit that you're good, but I can still fight!" Makoto spoke as she went on the attack again.
She threw another punch, but Zoisite dodged the blow once again. Then Makoto took off one of her earrings and threw it. Zoisite tilted his head, making the earring miss, but Makoto seized her chance, landing a back-handed chop right across his cheek. Zoisite staggered, but he didn't go down as he glared daggers at Makoto, now very angry.
"You scarred my precious face, you prehistoric witch!" he hissed venomously. "You're gonna regret that!"
Makoto didn't back down as she took a fighting stance, but then she heard a pair of familiar voices.
"Mako!"
"Where are you?"
Makoto turned around and saw Harusuke, Usagi, and Luna on the bridge just above her and Zoisite. The moment she turned her head, Zoisite saw his chance and retreated, disappearing in a flurry of petals. Usagi and Harusuke then rushed over upon seeing Joe on the ground holding his chest in pain. Makoto rushed on over too.
"Makoto, what happened here?" asked Usagi.
"Was there some kind of fight going on?" wondered Harusuke.
"I don't know," said Makoto.
She then looked at Joe, feeling worried about the boy. She was just about to help him on his feet when Joe knocked her arm away.
"Let go of me!" he snapped.
"Hey! Take it easy!" said Harusuke. "We were just making sure that you were OK!"
"Mind your business!" snapped Joe. "Leave me alone!"
And with that, Joe staggered away, leaving Usagi and even the toys he had won behind.
Usagi was cross. "What the heck is his problem?!" she grumbled crossly. "We were just trying to help him!"
Makoto then went after Joe, following him.
"Wait! Mako, where are you going?" asked Harusuke worriedly.
"Tell us what's going on!" called Usagi.
But Makoto didn't reply as she followed Joe until they were out of sight. Luna's eyes narrowed.
"I can sense it..." she said. "Something was here."
"What do you mean, Luna?" asked Usagi.
"Something was just here, and it had a powerful evil aura," said Luna. "I'm certain of it."
"Something evil? Does that mean that something from the Dark Kingdom was just here?" asked Harusuke.
Luna nodded. "Without a doubt."
"Then... if that's true, Mako and Joe are in danger!" exclaimed Usagi. "We've got to follow them!"
She ran after Makoto and Joe, with Luna and Harusuke following.
Makoto continued to follow Joe until they reached back into town. At this point, Joe had quite enough.
"You need to stop following me," he said. "How long do you intend to keep this up?"
"I'm just afraid that someone else is gonna come after you," said Makoto. "So I figured I'd be your bodyguard."
"And just why would you think anyone would be after me?" Joe asked crossly.
"Maybe because you won too much of that crane game," smiled Makoto. "Maybe the folks at the game center hired someone to hunt you down and kill ya!"
Joe then smiled. "No way... I doubt that much," he said.
Makoto then grew a little shy seeing Joe smile. "So... you think that you could teach me some tricks on winning a crane game?"
"You could never do it," scoffed Joe. "It takes-"
Then Joe felt a sharp pain run through his chest, causing him to clutch it and wince. Makoto grew worried.
"What's the matter, Joe?" she asked. "Are you OK?"
Joe didn't answer. He staggered until he walked through the door to a cafe. Makoto was about to follow him inside, but Joe looked back, stopping her.
"I'd like to drink my coffee alone," he spoke as the door closed behind him.
Then Usagi and Harusuke appeared with Luna, who heard and saw everything.
"Well, he's certainly got an attitude," grumped Usagi. "Talk about unfriendly."
"Makoto, I gotta ask you, why are you bothering with that guy anyway?" asked Harusuke. "I mean, he hasn't exactly been nice to you."
Makoto then blushed. "Well, that may be so, but that's what I like about him," she said. "You see... he reminds me of the guy that broke my heart."
Harusuke, Usagi, and Luna looked at the tall girl in surprise as she gazed at Joe through the window in the cafe lovingly.
"Now that is the face of a girl in love," whispered Usagi to Harusuke.
"If you say so," said Harusuke. "Although I am wondering why love makes girls act so dopey." He then spoke to Makoto. "So... I take to you're going to stay here and keep an eye on Joe? If that's the case, then we'll stay here with you."
"You don't have to," said Makoto. "I'll be OK by myself."
"It's no trouble at all," said Usagi. "What are friends for?"
Then the three noticed Joe, who was looking directly at them. He then motioned towards Mako inviting her inside to sit by him. Makoto was nervous while Usagi was excited.
"He wants you to go inside, Mako!" she said excitedly. "Go for it!"
"But... what'll I do?" murmured Makoto nervously. "I don't know if-"
"You gotta stop talking and get going!" insisted Usagi as she pulled Makoto by the arm. "Go on! There's no waiting when it comes to love! And good luck!"
Makoto protested, but Usagi kept pushing until she was in the cafe. Harusuke could only sigh as he watched.
"Girls," he muttered. "Go fig."
Makoto then went over to Joe's table, blushing up to her ears as she sat down in front of him.
Joe took a few sips of his coffee that he ordered. Then he placed his cup down. "Don't get the wrong idea. It's just too annoying to see you standing outside watching me," he said. "Anyway, you wanted to know how I'm so good at the crane game, right? Well, I'm good at it because I've got some supernatural power."
"Supernatural power?!"
"That's right. Ever since I was a kid, I've had this weird ability," explained Joe. "Here, I'll show you."
He then looked at a coaster on the table beside him and hovered his hand over it. The coaster began to rattle and shake, and then it started to levitate, much to Makoto's surprise. Joe then closed his hand, and the coaster fell back to the table.
"You understand now? I've never met anyone else that can do that," smirked Joe proudly. "That's why I know you could never win that crane game."
Makoto picked up the coaster looking at it. "But... isn't that cheating, though?" she wondered tentatively.
"Doesn't matter," Joe spoke. "I've got this ability, and I'm putting it to good use."
Makoto wasn't sure, but she didn't say anything more. Then she heard a man's voice next to her.
"May I take your order?" the man asked.
"I'll have a large order of curry rice," began Makoto, but then she shook her head, changing her mind. "No, wait! Never mind. Tea with milk!"
Then when she looked up, she froze, and her eyes widened in shock. The man that she thought was a waiter was Zoisite. She and Joe immediately jumped in surprise. And before they had a chance to react, Zoisite waved his hand, sending a force of energy, knocking Makoto and Joe to the ground turning over a chair. Usagi and the others saw what was going on.
"He's the one I sensed before!" said Luna. "He's from the Dark Kingdom!"
The three immediately headed for the entrance hoping to help Makoto, but the door opened, and Joe came crawling out on the floor scared out of his wits and leaving Makoto behind. Usagi and Harusuke scowled at him, appalled by his behavior.
"Where do you think you're going?!" demanded Usagi. "Crawling away and leaving Mako behind?!"
"I don't care about her!" cried Joe. "She's the one that followed me!"
"How dare you say that?!" snapped Harusuke. "And you call yourself a man acting this way?!"
"She's not my responsibility!" Joe snapped back. "Besides, giant girls like that aren't my type!"
Now Harusuke was mad. "You jerk!" he yelled. "Why I oughta-!"
He was about to grab Joe by the collar, but Joe managed to slip away, running as fast as his feet could carry him. Then, using his powers, Zoisite broke the window and leaped out of it chasing Joe in hot pursuit. Harusuke and Usagi then went to Makoto, ensuring she wasn't hurt.
"Mako, are you alright?!" asked Usagi.
"Yeah. You're not hurt, are you?" Harusuke wondered worriedly.
Makoto appeared to be OK, but she was hurt more emotionally than physically. She had heard everything Joe had said about her.
"That's the second time a guy I liked said that about me," she spoke bitterly. "I've had it!"
Her face was now filled with anger as she bolted out the door chasing Joe and Zoisite.
Joe was still running as fast as he could into the park. The sun had already set as it was now nightfall. Zoisite then appeared before him, having caught up.
"Pl-please! Let me go!" begged Joe.
"There's no need to run away," Zoisite spoke calmly. "After all, you are one of us."
"One of you?" puzzled Joe fearfully. "What do you mean?"
Zoisite responded by summoning the Dark Crystal again, emitting the same frequency as before. Joe screamed in agony as he felt the waves again; this time, there was no stopping Zoisite. At the same time, Makoto arrived to see a hole open in Joe's chest, and the red crystal inside was taken out and went into Zoisite's hand.
"I'll be taking this Rainbow Crystal," he spoke.
"What did you do to him?!" demanded Makoto.
Zoisite then glared at her. "It's you. The girl who scarred my precious face!" he growled. "Well, now, it's payback time! Arise Gamecen! Return to your former self and take this girl down!"
Joe was then enveloped by a bright light screaming in agony. At that moment, Usagi and Harusuke arrived and watched with horrified eyes as a strange tornado shrouded Joe and turned him into a strange creature. It had a brown-red body, wore strange white armor on his left calf, right upper thigh, and shoulders. He also had a white helmet with red markings and beady red eyes on top of his head.
"Oh no! Joe turned into a monster!" cried Usagi.
"Come on, Usagi, we gotta help Makoto!" spoke Harusuke urgently.
"Both of you! Transform!" ordered Luna.
"MOON PRISM POWER MAKE UP!" yelled Usagi.
"SOLAR GUARDIAN POWER FLARE UP!" shouted Harusuke.
Transformation Sequence: Usagi
Usagi's body shone with rainbow-colored light as she seemed to spin around. Then from her brooch, it flashed pink and pink ribbons shot out, wrapping her upper torso and midsection and became a white leotard with a red bow in the center and a collar that was blue with white stripes. Next, Usagi crosses her arms, and more pink ribbons wrap around them, turning into long white gloves. The pink ribbon then wraps around Usagi's legs and turns into a pair of red thigh-high boots. Then a blue skirt appears around Usagi's waist with a red bow in the back. Then a tiny gem starts glowing in the middle of Usagi's forehead, and a gold tiara with a red gem, a pair of dangling crescent moon earrings, a red choker with a moon on it appear along with red circular accents in her hair buns. Usagi then strikes her signature pose as the moon shines behind her in the background.
Transformation sequence: Harusuke.
Harusuke's bracelet begins to glow as Harusuke holds it into the air. Next, the symbol of the sun starts to shine on Harusuke's head as golden yellow and silver light envelop his body. First, the sun appears above him, shining its light upon him. Then, while Harusuke bathed in its light, a silver jumpsuit with gold lines on his hips materializes around his body. After that, the light shone on his legs, and long golden metal boots that went up to his knees appeared on his legs with silver hexagon knee pads. Next, the light shone on his arms, and then golden gauntlets appeared on his hands going up to wrists. Then a yellow symbol of the sun materializes in front of him, and it crashes into his chest, making a golden chest piece of armor appear with silver shoulder guards. Finally, a silver helmet covers his head, exposing his hair and making it stand up with a mouth guard covering his mouth and nose. Finally, Harusuke's eyes open, and he strikes his signature pose the symbol of the sun appears behind him.
Makoto stood bravely at Gamecen, ready to protect herself with Zoisite smirking with glee when they all heard a pair of voices.
"Stop right there!"
"Yeah! Why don't you pick on someone your own size?!"
Makoto looked behind her and immediately recognized the two heroes. "It's Sailor Moon and Solaris!" she cried.
Zoisite laughed, not afraid. "I'm sorry, but you're a little too late, Sailor Moon and Solaris," he spoke.
"Just who are you?!" demanded Sailor Moon.
Zoisite then took off into the air. "Allow me to introduce myself," he spoke. "I'm a member of one of the Four Kings of Heaven of the Dark Kingdom. Call me Zoisite."
The moment Solaris heard that name, he suddenly remembered back to the night when he first saw him. His hands balled up into fists as he was now shaking with anger.
"It's you!" he yelled with rage. "You're the one who sent those monsters to kill Nephrite!"
"Oh, him? Oh yes. I remember that," Zoisite spoke coolly. "Killing him was quite something, wasn't it? Although, it is rather sad that you're mourning over such a weak and helpless creature like him."
"You bastard!" Solaris roared as he immediately took a giant leap, gunning straight for Zoisite with his fist raised.
Zoisite calmly remained floating as Solaris drew closer and closer. "We'll have our time Solaris," he spoke. "But for now, I'll have Gamecen keep you and your friends entertained for a bit."
Then at the last moment, Zoisite disappeared, making Solaris punch nothing but air as he landed on the ground.
"Damn it!" he cursed.
"He disappeared!" cried Sailor Moon.
Then the monster Zoisite addressed as Gamecen went on the attack. A white gauntlet appeared on his hand, and he pushed a button on top of it, making a spiked mallet appear. The mallet extended in his hand as he swung it down towards Sailor Moon, Makoro, and Luna. The three ran out of the way as the mallet slammed into the ground. Gamecen continued his assault, hitting his hammer at Sailor Moon, and the blonde superheroine dodged and jumped, narrowly avoiding the mallet. Solaris immediately rushed to her aid, jumping into the air with a flying kick. Gamecen saw the attack coming and grabbed Solaris' foot. He then threw Solaris with a great force causing the man to land on top of Sailor Moon, causing the girl to help in pain.
"Solaris... get off... you're heavy!" complained Sailor Moon.
"Sorry... Sailor Moon..." he groaned.
Gamecen seeing his chance raised his mallet about to strike, but then suddenly Makoto came to the rescue lifting Gamecen above her head.
"Just what do you think you're doing to my heroes, you monster?!" she yelled. "Leave them alone!"
Then, a glowing green symbol appeared in the middle of her forehead as she threw Gamecen into the bushes with incredible strength. Luna saw this and gasped.
"That symbol!" gasped Luna. "That means..."
The black cat then jumped into the air doing her signature backflip, leaving a light trail. It swirled around, and a pen appeared. It was like Ami's and Rei's, but it was green. Luna quickly carried the pen over to Makoto. At the same time, Gamecen recovered and pressed the button on his gauntlet, and his mallet turned into a giant clamp. The clamp shot forward, heading right toward Sailor Moon and Solaris.
"Look out!" yelled Makoto
But it was too late. The clamp clasped around Sailor Moon and Solaris, squeezing them tightly.
"I... can't move...!" winced Sailor Moon.
"Me... either...!" groaned Solaris.
"Hang on, you two!" cried Makoto. "I'm coming to help you!"
"Hold on a minute!" said a voice coming from behind her. "You can't help them the way you are now!"
Makoto looked down, and she saw Luna with the green pen in front of her. She was surprised.
"L-luna?! You can talk?!" she exclaimed.
"There's no time to explain, Makoto," spoke Luna. "Listen and listen carefully. You are a Sailor Guardian just like Sailor Moon! If you want to help her and Solaris, you must hold up the pen and shout: Jupiter Power, Make Up! It's the only way to save them!"
Makoto took the pen in her hand and nodded in understanding. She then did as Luna asked and held up her pen.
"JUPITER POWER, MAKE UP!"
Transformation Sequence: Makoto
The symbol on Makoto's pen begins to glow in a bright shade of green as she holds up her transformation pen. Then, it begins to spin around as it shines its enveloping Makoto in green light. As she held up her pen while turning, long whips of lightning erupted from it, forming several rings around her body. They swirl around her like an atom. Then in a brilliant flash of light, her outfit is formed, having to look just like Sailor Moon's, but she is wearing green boots along with her pair of roses earrings, the center bow is pink, and the rims of her gloves green as is her skirt, her choker, and collar. After that, she finishes with her signature pose.
"No way!" exclaimed Sailor Moon. " "Mako's a Guardian too?!"
Solaris' eyes went wide with wonder as well, but then he felt a sharp pain in his mind, beginning to have another vision once again. He saw that same white castle under the starry sky, and he saw a young man kneeling before a young woman with long hair. He also noticed that same young man leaping into the battle, letting out a fierce cry, but now Solaris could see the young man's opponent. It was a sinister-looking woman carrying a staff with an orb on it. She appeared strong, but the young man wouldn't back down as he swung his sword. That was when the vision ended.
"Damn it... those visions again!" he thought. "Why am I getting these visions every time we get a new guardian?! Just what the heck is going on?!"
Gamecen pressed another button on his gauntlet, summoning another clamp, and shot it towards Sailor Jupiter. She jumped up, dodging the blow, and she crossed her arms with her pinkies and index fingers extended. A small lightning rod extended forth on her tiara, sparking with electricity. A lightning bolt came down and struck Sailor Jupiter's lightning rod charging the hero with power.
"Jupiter, my guardian planet!" she commanded. "Bring forth a storm! Summon the clouds and bring down your mighty thunder! JUPITER SUPREME THUNDER!"
She extended her arms and shot a powerful blast of lightning at Gamecen. The attack hit Gamecen, shocking him and breaking the clamps that held Sailor Moon and Solaris, setting them free.
"Thanks for the assist, Sailor Jupiter!" called out Solaris.
"Alright! One more!" spoke Sailor Jupiter as she readied herself to attack again, but Luna then stopped her.
"No! Don't!" she yelled. "Gamecen may be a monster, but he still has Joe's, human heart! That still makes him a human being!"
"Then how are we supposed to beat it?!" cried Solaris.
"Sailor Moon has to return the monster into its original form!" explained Luna. "It's the only way!"
"But how?!" cried Sailor Moon. "I can't do that!"
Luna then jumped, doing a backflip leaving a trail of light again. It formed a strange wand as it landed in Sailor Moon's hands. It had a short pink handle with a yellow crescent moon in the end.
"What is this thing?" asked Sailor Moon.
"It's called the Moon Stick!" explained Luna. "Hold it up and shout: Moon Healing Escalation! It will return Joe to normal!"
Sailor Moon did as Luna asked and held up her Moon Stick as it began to emanate a trail of glitter and dust as she waved it around in a circular motion.
"MOON HEALING ESCALATION!"
The dust and glitter enveloped Gamecen as he began to glow in a bright light groaning in agony.
"REFRESH!"
Then Gamcen transformed back into Joe, who fell to the ground unconscious.
"Wow... it worked," murmured Solaris. "Joe's back to normal!"
Luna then turned to Sailor Moon and Jupiter. "Makoto Kino, you are now the fourth Sailor Guardian, Sailor Jupiter," she said. "As for you, Sailor Moon, we now have five Guardians on our side. And now that we do, you will be the leader of the team to find the princess and protect her."
Sailor Moon gawked at the cat in surprise. "What?! Me?! The leader?!"
"Yes. The Moon Stick is proof that you're the leader," spoke Luna. "Make sure you use it well."
The next day, Usagi, Harusuke, Luna, and Makoto were at the Game Center. Makoto was furiously playing the Sailor V game taking out her frustrations.
"Darn it, darn it, darn it! Come on!" she yelled as she blasted one enemy after another. "Who needs boys?!"
Then an enemy hit her, taking her last life resulting in a game over. However, while still feeling upset, Makoto inserted one more coin while the Tsukino siblings and Luna watched in worry. Just then, Motoki came up.
"Hey, Motoki! It's you!" Usagi spoke happily.
"Hey, Usagi. Hey Harusuke," he greeted. "Hey, I heard that Joe the Crane Game Troll was here yesterday. I wish I could have seen him."
"Trust me, you don't want to," spoke Harusuke flatly. "We had a chance to talk to him, and well... let's just say he was not what we expected."
Motoki raised a brow in confusion and was just about to ask what Harusuke meant, but Usagi cut in.
"Hey Motoki, let us introduce you to a friend of ours, Makoto Kino," she said. "Makoto, this is Motoki. The friend of ours we were telling you about."
"Nice to meet you," smiled Motoki.
Makoto looked at Motoki, and her eyes sparkled with wonder. "You're just exactly like my former love who broke my heart," she spoke dreamily.
Usagi and Harusuke gawked at the tall girl in surprise.
"Wait just a minute!" exclaimed Usagi. "You were just saying the same thing about Crane Joe yesterday!"
"Well, I just meant his voice," spoke Makoto.
The Tsukino twins fell over in surprise.
"Come on, Mako," groaned Usagi.
"Man! This girl has more crushes than you do, Usagi!" groaned Harusuke.
"She's a strange one, alright..." groaned Luna. "Just exactly what we need around here..."
