Hello, everybody! After taking a much-needed break, it's time we get the ball rolling on Sailor Moon S!

Thanks to your support, I intend to make this pretty impressive, so buckle up and hang on because it's about to get wild!

Here is the first chapter of Sailor Moon S!

In a place far from the realm of reality, inside of a strange spatial room, a peculiar object stood. It radiated with an ominous light that was an eerie violet and black color and appeared to be in the form of a small tower. As it sat there all alone, two pairs of lights twinkled from above it like eyes as it began to speak in a dark and deep voice.

"It's happening soon. The light will awaken and will bring destruction to our Omega Area, our sacred ground," the structure said. "And I see other lights, too, Lights that are the radiance of planets, Guardian Planets. This Omega Area is overflowing with power that reminds me of our old world. The massive aura of this energy is like a beacon. Causing everyone to be drawn in by it, even the powerful."

As the structure continued to speak, its light began to shine even brighter until it showed a projection of a particular town in Japan in the world of reality.

"I also sense a light that is like the Taioron Crystal. The source of our existence and from which our life flows. It's calling me, beckoning me, which makes my fascination grow all the more. However, this sacred ground belongs to us! From here, we shall build a new world for ourselves! Kaolinite! Tomoe!"

At his command, two individual people appeared kneeling before the structure. The first was a woman with long red hair who wore a black dress and a pendant around her neck. The second was a young man wearing a white lab coat on top of a white shirt and tie and a pair of khakis, his face hidden in the shadows with only glasses and a sinister smile showing.

"I will not tolerate any interference for those who get in our way!" the structure went on. "Make sure you both remove these anomalies without any hesitation! And as for the light of destruction, make sure that it stays asleep!"

"Of course. Without any hesitation," acknowledged Kaolinite. "Thy will shall be carried out, Master Pharoh 90."

Tomoe could only smile as a small chuckle of excitement escaped his lips.

Destruction was everywhere. The sky dyed with the color red, and the smell of death hung in the air in Juuban. Yet, amongst this terrible atmosphere, Rei stood there, appearing to be the only living person that was alive.

"What is this?" wondered Rei, unnerved with what she was seeing. "Is this Juuban?"

Then as Rei continued to look around, her eyes fell upon an awful sight. Standing a few feet away from where she stood was Sailor Moon and all the other Guardians, frozen in stone. Not only that, but just several feet away, an ominous and overwhelming wave of black energy was now beginning to destroy the city of Juuban, building by building and getting closer by the second.

Rei could only stand there in horror. "The silence! It's closing in!" she gasped. "It's no use! I'm no match for it!"

Suddenly, a bright light shone just behind her, causing her to turn around, and she saw a strange and elaborate crystal shaped like a star shining so brightly Rei had to shield her eyes. At that moment, she heard a voice.

"Awaken! The time has come. For the light guided by the three talismans!"

"Who are you?!" Rei called out to the light. "Are you the Messiah?! If so, then please help us!"

In response, the crystal suddenly split apart, turning into three separate little lights as the voice came again.

"Now, let the destruction begin!"

"No, wait!" cried Rei. "Don't go!"

But it was too late. The three lights disappeared into the darkness, leaving Rei alone once again. However, there was worse to come, for the tidal wave of destructive energy had finally grown close enough to where Rei stood, still destroying everything in its path. Rei looked back towards the wave coming towards her, in time to see it shatter and destroy the statues of her friends one by one until they were all nothing but dust in the wind. Then just as the wave was about to consume her -.

Rei woke up with a start, her pulse pumping and her skin clammy with sweat. No sooner when she did, the first thing she saw was Usagi, the ordango blonde fast asleep on her book and drooling all over it. Rei scowled with annoyance and disgust as she soon realized that she was in the main room of the Hikawa Shrine, along with her friends, studying for an important test.

"What is it, Rei?" asked Ami. "Is something the matter?"

"Yeah. You look like you were having a nightmare," said Makoto.

Rei then sat up and made Usagi sit up too. "Sorry, I guess I must have drifted off," apologized Rei. "I had this weird dream."

"It must have been one doozy of a dream," said Harusuke.

"What were you dreaming about?" inquired Minako.

Before Rei could answer, Usagi, who was now fully awake, interrupted them, laughing with glee.

"What a strange coincidence! I had a funny dream, too!" the ordango blonde giggled. "And boy, was it a crazy and funny one! I had eaten way too much ice cream, so I had to be taken to hospital, and guess who else was also there? Mamo! He ate so many pork buns that he ended up getting sick, too! So we ran into each other in the hospital kitchen, looking for more food!"

Everyone stayed silent in a brief uncomfortable silence.

"Of course, only you would dream about something like that, Sis," Harusuke sighed.

"What? Don't you think that's funny?" Usagi asked, not understanding.

"Yes, but we don't have time to be dreaming right now," Ami said politely. "We need to focus on our studies."

"Speaking of which, how did you do on yesterday's proficiency test, Usagi?" asked Makoto.

Usagi gulped, not saying a word.

"I can tell you how she did," Harusuke chirped. "She most likely got a big, fat, whopping-"

Usagi immediately clasped a hand over Harusuke's mouth, cutting him off. "Well, at least I don't think I scored a zero or anything like that," she said sheepishly.

Ami was now stern. "Usagi, we're third years now. High school entrance exams are less than a year away," she said. "How are you going to pass if you keep getting grades like that? You've got to do better."

"I know," sighed Usagi. "Believe me; I'm trying."

"Well, we have been using a lot of our study time to fight evil and save the world," said Minako. "But however much we wish to get that time back, as they say: There's no use crying over spoiled milk."

Ami then suddenly squeaked. "No, Usagi, you mustn't remember that!" she cried. Then she turned to Minako. "The correct saying is, "There's no use crying over spilled milk."

"Well, that's one way to say it," said Minako, her cheeks blushing pink.

"Come on, Minako. If I had a thirty yen coin for every time you butchered a saying, I'd be a millionaire by now," said Harusuke. "Then again, we should be used to this by now."

"And I think spoiled is more fitting in this case," said Usagi.

As everyone else continued chatting, Rei couldn't help but recall what she had dreamt about just moments ago. The mere thought of it not only frightened her but also made her worry. Could what she had seen be just a dream, or could it have been an omen of something in the future?

Inside of a laboratory, of which they made their new base, Tomoe and Kaolinite were busily at work concocting something. First, Tomoe heated a tube filled with a strange purple liquid with an embryo inside. Next, Tomoe poured the concoction inside a beaker filled with a green solution when it began to bubble. Kaolinite then summoned a strange wooden wand and held it over the glass, making it glow in black. Then from the beaker, something shot out, and an unknown object appeared. It was in a small spheroid shape, bumpy like a pumpkin, and was colored white, radiating with evil energy.

Kaolinite was pleased as the object came over to her, stopping and hovering in her hands. "Well done, Tomoe," she said. "The experiment was a success. Thanks to your research and my magic, we have successfully created a Daimon Egg."

"Thank you, Kaolinite," acknowledged Tomoe with a grin. "I live to serve you and the master.."

Kaolinite gazed at the Daimon Egg. "Yes. For Master Pharoh 90 to conquer this world, we must first seek out the light that he longs for," she went on. "And with your Daimon Eggs, we can seek out the chosen ones and steal their pure hearts."

"Pure hearts, Lady Kaolinite?" repeated Tomoe. "For what purpose?"

"There are three individuals that possess Pure Heart Crystals that contain talismans," explained Kaolinite. "Once these talismans are brought together from them, a mighty power known as the Holy Grail will appear, which is the light Master Pharoh 90 seeks."

"I see," realized Tomoe, his glasses glistening with interest. "And once we find the talismans contained with these chosen few and summon the Holy Grail..."

Kaolinite smirked with a chuckle. "That's right. Then, Master Pharoh 90 will regain his former glory, and this world shall be ours."

Kaolinite then disappeared from the lab taking the Daimon Egg with her, as Tomoe began to cackle quietly to himself, his giggles slowing growing louder and more riddled with madness until he was shrieking with laughter, feeling pleased with himself.

The next day, Usagi and Harusuke were walking home from school. Usagi was feeling very sorry and upset with herself; the reason being was that she had scored a five on her English Proficiency Test.

"Well, you were right about one, Sis," Harusuke said. "At least you didn't get a zero."

"It doesn't matter, Harusuke!" Usagi groaned. "No matter how much you look at it, it's a terrible score! I wonder what Mom and Dad will say when they see it? Or worse, what's Rei going to say when she sees it?! At times like these, she always seems to bump into me like a heat-seeking missile!"

Before Harusuke could answer as they rounded a corner, Rei suddenly came out walking at the very same time, her head turned to the ground and not looking where she was going. The two girls collided, their foreheads smacking straight into each other with a bump.

"That hurt!" Usagi wailed.

"Usagi!" Rei glared crossly.

"Well, I suppose this is what it means when they say, tempting fate," said Harusuke.

Usagi, Harusuke, and Rei then went over to Juuban Park, the girls using the water faucet to ease the pain of their throbbing heads.

"Geez, my poor head! It feels like I smacked a tree!" complained Rei. "Why didn't you watch where you were going, Usagi?!"

"That's supposed to be my line!" Usagi huffed. "You plowed into me so hard; I feel like I got beaten up! Now, move over! It's my turn!"

"Well, guess I'd feel that way, too, if I got a score like yours on a test," said Rei.

Usagi huffed as she took her turn with the water.

"And here it comes," Harusuke muttered, expecting Usagi and Rei to get into an argument as usual.

But Rei then smiled. "But, you shouldn't try to stress on your scores that much," she said. "You do have a lot of other good points besides studying."

Usagi and Harusuke looked up at Rei in surprise as she took a few steps away from them.

"Rei, did I hear you correctly?" Harusuked asked. "It sounded like you complimented Usagi."

"You must have hit your head harder than I thought," Usagi said. "That doesn't sound like the Rei, I know."

"You think so?" wondered Rei. "I never really noticed." She paused for a brief moment or so until she looked back at the Tsukino siblings. "Say, Usagi? Harusuke? Do you two ever think about your futures?" she asked.

Usagi and Harusuke looked at each other, not expecting this question, and thought about it for a few seconds.

"To tell you the truth, I'm still not sure what I want to do," said Usagi. "So, I don't know."

"Same with me," said Harusuke. "What about you, Rei?"

"Well, let's see," said Rei. "I'd like to be a singer, a songwriter, a model, a charming voice actress, and, well..."

The raven-haired then paused as her cheeks turned bright red, which made Usagi and Harusuke all the more curious.

"Well? What is it?" the Tsukino siblings asked.

Rei looked at them, glancing at Harusuke a bit. Then she let out a squeal and gave Usagi a hard slap across her back, making the ordango let out a squawk in pain as Harusuke flinched in surprise.

"Come on, you two! Don't ask me that!" Rei spoke giddily. "I want to fall madly in love and get married, but I would never say that out loud!"

"But you just did," Harusuke and Usagi mumbled.

"Harusuke, aren't you planning on dating a girl sometime soon?" Rei asked. "After all, you are a handsome guy, and you're always with cute girls."

Harusuke's glanced away, his cheeks going pink. "Yes, well, I'm still taking my time when it comes to stuff like that," he said, trying not to stammer. "So, the jury's still out when it comes to my relationship status."

"And Usagi, aren't you going to marry Mamoru one day?" continued Rei. "After all, it's your big dream."

Usagi immediately recovered from the slap, her cheeks turning pink with embarrassment. "Now, you're embarrassing me!" Usagi gushed. "No need to put me on the spot!"

"But, I'm willing to bet that Mamoru would be embarrassed if he saw your low test score," Rei said with pity.

Usagi flinched, feeling like she got sucker-punched right on the cheek, but Rei gave the blonde an affectionate pat on the shoulder.

"Hey, don't worry. Academics aren't everything," said Rei. "But you'll need to study harder to keep up with your class and have a bright future with Mamoru. And stay positive, too, Usagi. That's the best thing you've got going for you. That, and you've got an awesome older brother. See you later!"

And before Usagi and Harusuke could say anything more, Rei walked away, disappearing from view.

Usagi was a bit annoyed, but her frown changed into a smile. "She can be a bit mean, but in her heart, she genuinely cares about all of us, including me," she thought to herself. "All she wants is for me to work harder. Thanks, Rei."

Harusuke, on the other hand, couldn't help but feel worried. "I wonder what's going on with Rei?" he wondered. "Normally, she and Usagi would end up going at each other like dogs, but Rei was acting nice. Too nice. Asking about our futures and encouraging Usagi the way she did? I might be overthinking, but I can't help but think."

Meanwhile, Kaolinite was walking around Juuban under a human disguise. She was now wearing a red v-neck mini dress and red pumps and searching around to find a place to plant the Daimon Egg. So far, she couldn't find a suitable host for it. Then, she caught sight of the stairs leading up to the Hikawa Shrine. When she did, she sensed something waiting for her at the top. So, she walked up the flight of stairs until she came to the courtyard. She glanced around, looking very carefully.

Then, she saw the shrine's sanctified tree, whose branches had dozens of paper fortunes tied to them. The woman then walked over to the tree and summoned the Daimon Egg. The Egg began to glow as it hovered over to the tree until it touched the surface of its trunk. Then, it disappeared into the bark of the tree as it gave a pulse of black energy, signaling that the Daimon now possessed it. At the very same time, Rei came running up the stairs, trying to be jubilant as she was before. The moment Kaolinite saw her, she smiled.

"It would appear that I was right to choose the right host for the Daimon Egg," Kaolinite said to herself. "That girl must be a pure heart possessor. And if that's the case, then we shall soon see if she's the one we're looking for."

Back with the Tsukino siblings, Usagi was still moping about her failing grade while Harusuke tried to cheer her up. The two were sitting by the stairs on the edge of Juuban Park before going home.

"Come on, Sis. There's no need to get so down on yourself," said Harusuke. "As long as you understand that you need to improve, that should be enough, right? Although, Mom ain't exactly going to be happy about it."

"I know. I just can't help but think about what Rei said," sighed Usagi. "I mean, she's right. I've got to do better than this. I can already imagine what Mamo's going to say if he saw this."

"That's a terrible grade!" said a familiar voice.

"Yup, that's just what he'd say," Usagi nodded in agreement.

Then, Usagi and Harusuke stopped and looked up to find Mamoru standing just behind them. Usagi was so startled that she immediately shot to her feet, backing up to the wall, while letting out a shrill scream.

"Once again, tempted fate has struck again," Harusuke sighed.

"Oh, hey there, Mamo!" Usagi sputtered, trying to play off her shock. "Lovely weather we're having, isn't it?"

"Usako," Mamoru spoke sternly.

"I know what you're going to say, but don't worry! I'm going to make it right!" Usagi said, crumpling up her test. "The others and I are going to have a study session over at Rei's place, so we can buckle down and study later!"

"That sounds like a good idea," said Mamoru. "Although, you should have been doing that the whole time."

"Well, we were too busy saving the world before!" Usagi went on. "But now we should be able to make up for the time we lost!"

"You're only saying that because Minako said the same thing the other day," pointed out Harusuke.

Usagi then glared at her brother, only to have him look away, pretending not to say anything.

Mamoru then smiled. "That sounds fair," he said innocently. "If that's the case, then maybe we should put off all our dates until you catch up on schoolwork."

Usagi flinched as she froze up, dumbstruck. "Well, that's a bit extreme, isn't it?" she asked meekly. "I mean, we don't have to do that, do we?"

Mamoru responded by picking up Usagi's schoolbag and handed over to her. "You study hard now," he said. "And Harusuke, make sure you help her, OK?"

"O-Okay," Harusuke nodded.

Mamoru then left. No sooner than he did, Usagi let out an upset and defeated whine as her eyes began to fill with tears.

"Me and my big mouth," the ordango blonde sobbed.

"You know, there's a saying for this situation," Harusuke said brightly. "It's better to offer no excuse than a bad one."

Usagi could only whimper as she hung her head in defeat.

Inside the room of sacred fire, Rei was using her spiritual powers to try to find the meaning of her dream. But, no matter how much she tried to read the fire, she couldn't feel anything, not even a twinge of evil. Rei then left the room, wanting to get some fresh air.

"Maybe that dream didn't mean anything," Rei said to herself. "I'm probably overreacting."

Rei then went to the shrine's gift shop booth and drew a fortune paper, hoping to ease her worries. However, when she opened up her fortune and read it, it didn't make her feel any less worried or better, but she decided to go ahead and tie her paper to the tree so that her prayer would come true.

"May only good things happen," Rei spoke quietly. "And may everyone live happily in peace."

Then, no sooner when she finished tying her fortune while saying her prayer, the tree suddenly began to glow and come to life. Its roots bent and ripped up from the ground like it was walking and began to shrink and change, turning into a humanoid form. What was once the Hikawa Shrine's tree had now turned into a woman. She had purple-pale skin, a long ponytail that was a rope with a pair of bells, a strange box on her back called an omikuji, and wore a yellow sleeveless gi with red trims along with blue stockings.

"What are you?!" Rei exclaimed.

The woman smirked. "I am Mikuji, and I'm after your pure heart!" she said ominously. "You care about your friends and family, and that's a sign that your heart is pure! I want it!"

Realizing that this woman was a monster, Rei knew that she was in trouble, but she also knew she couldn't transform, much less fight her right where she was.

"If I fight her here, I'll end up getting Grandpa and the others in danger," Rei said to herself. "I have to lead her away!"

Rei then took off, running, with Mikuji following in hot pursuit. As soon as Rei was sure that she was far enough away from the shrine, she pulled out her Star Power Stick to transform. But then, Mikuji came shooting out from the bushes, and before Rei had a chance to react, the Daimon pinned her hands to the wall, turned them into stone while digging into the wall, and detached them. Rei was now trapped. At that moment, Kaiorinite stepped out from behind a tree as Mikuji cackled in triumph, having to have caught her prey.

"Daemon Mikuji, I need to see if this girl possesses the light we seek," said Kaiorinite. "Take her pure heart so we can find out."

"As you wish," Mikuji acknowledged as she turned to Rei. "Looks like your fortune for today is "horrible luck!"

The Daemon then opened up her gi, revealing a black star right in the middle of her cleavage. It glowed brightly, and then from it, a black beam shot out, shooting directly into Rei's chest. Rei let out a cry in agony as the beam seemed to be drilling right into her chest like it was ripping it apart.

Kaolinite watched with interest. "It's only a matter of time before we'll know," she said. "And once we'll obtain the light, the master shall be most pleased."

At that very same time, Usagi, Harusuke, and Luna were on their way over to Rei's place for their study session, unaware of what was happening.

"Man, I don't want to waste my time studying," Usagi complained. "It's so boring!"

"Usagi, you know you can't," chided Harusuke. "Need I remind you that your future as a high schooler depends on it?"

"But I'd rather be on a date with Mamo," said Usagi. "You know what, that's what I'll do right now!"

Usagi turned on her heel about to walk away when Luna jumped up, landing right on top of her head.

"Usagi! You promised everyone that you would study, including Mamoru!" the black feline chided. "Don't tell me that you're going to break your promise!"

"But I don't want to!" whined Usagi.

Luna then glared dangerously and brandished her sharp cat claws. "Go study or get the claw!" she hissed menacingly.

"OK! OK! I'll go!" Usagi conceded, not wanting to be scratched. "Geez, Luna! You and Harusuke just don't get what it's like to be a girl in love!"

"A lazy girl, you mean," Luna smirked.

"Now, now. Let's not get heated," said Harusuke. "Besides, I was planning to buy you some pork buns afterward, Sis. That is if you do good studying."

Usagi drooled with hunger. "Oh yeah! Now I want to go studying!"

Then suddenly, just as the three came to the stairs of the Hikawa Shrine, they heard a loud anguished cry of pain, which made them jump, recognizing it as well.

"That sounded like Rei!" gasped Usagi.

"And she sounded like she's in pain!" said Harusuke.

"Something must have happened!" said Luna. "Let's hurry and see what's wrong!"

The three then ran up the stairs and into the courtyard, following the sound of Rei's screams. Then they saw Rei and Mikuji.

"W-What the heck is going on here?!" Usagi cried. "And what is that thing doing to Rei?!"

"I don't know, but we've got to help her!" Harusuke spoke urgently.

"Both of you, Transform! Quickly!" Luna urged.

Usagi grabbed her brooch while Harusuke pulled back his sleeve, exposing his bracelet.

"MOON CRYSTAL POWER MAKE UP!"

"SOLAR PRISM POWER BLAZE FORTH!"

Transformation Sequence: Usagi

Usagi holds up the Crystal Star brooch as it opens, revealing the Silver Crystal inside. Usagi waved her hand on the Silver Crystal, and it flashed it a bright short burst of pink light emitting a chime. It does it a second time, and on the third, it shines brightly, enveloping Usagi in its glow. Usagi then holds the brooch above her head, suspending it in between her hands, drawing it to the center of her torso, flipping it once before placing it in the center of her chest. She then spins around a few times as the crystal begins to glow even brighter than before in pink light. She holds her hands up as a pair of wings spring forth from her back while pink ribbons come out from the crystal wrapping around Usagi's body, forming her leotard. The wings on her back disappeared as more pink ribbons wrapped around her arms and hands, creating white gloves and red boots around her calves and feet. As the blue skirt appears around her waist, one more pink ribbon ties at her back as she does a kind of spread-eagle motion with one leg up, a glowing moon symbol appearing on her forehead. Her tiara, earrings, choker, and ordango covers appear, and Usagi, now Sailor Moon, finishes with her signature pose.

Transformation Sequence: Harusuke.

Harusuke holds up his hand as the stone on his bracelet shines bright in golden light. The stone lets out three pulses, the symbol of the Sun glowing inside of it on the third pulse. Harusuke is enveloped in silver and gold light as he jumps into the air, his clothes disappearing. The symbol of the sun appears just above him and goes down, phasing through his body, making his silver jumpsuit with gold lines on the sides materialize. Two smaller sun symbols go over his feet to his kneecaps, and his gold and metal boots and silver kneecaps appear. Around his waist, a ring of light wraps around it, forming a belt with a gold belt buckle in the shape of an oval. Harusuke then spreads his arms wide as two more light rings envelop his arms and hands, making gold gloves appear. The symbol of the sun appears in front of him now, and crashes into his chest, making his chest piece like before, now thicker and having shoulder guards. Finally, a helmet materializes above Harusuke's head, the design slightly different as he reaches and grabs hit, putting it on his head, not having a mouth protector. Harusuke opens his eyes, punches his hands together, and strikes his signature pose, the symbol of the sun appearing behind him with a star-filled background.

As Mikuji continued to torture Rei while Kaiorinite watched, the two heard a pair of voices.

"Stop what you're doing right now!"

Mikuji stopped her beam as she and Kaiorinite looked back, only to find Sailor Moon and Solaris.

"How dare you attack that girl who has a pure heart?!" scolded Sailor Moon. "That's unforgivable!"

"And we won't stand by while someone like you attacks the defenseless for no reason!" Solaris also scolded.

"I am the Pretty Guardian who fights for love and justice, Sailor Moon! And in the name of the Moon, I'll punish you!"

"And I'm the knight with the brilliance of the sun and the courage of a warrior, who also fights for love and justice, Solaris! In the name of the sun with my blinding rays, I'll scorch you!"

"Sailor Moon and Solaris?" repeated Mikuji. "Never heard of you two, and frankly, I don't care. All that matters is obtaining a pure heart, and that's what we'll get no matter who gets in our way!"

Mikuji then whipped her ponytail about, making it extend and wrap around Sailor Moon's legs. Then, with a mighty yank, she pulled Sailor Moon towards her spinning her around until she slammed her to the ground, taking her out with ease. Solaris then leaped towards Rei, hoping to try and save her, but Mikuji suddenly appeared in front of him, cutting him off. Before Solaris could react, the Daemon landed a powerful knee right into his gut, knocking the wind out of him and sending him to the ground, stunned and gasping.

At that time, Ami, Minako, Makoto, and Artemis came rushing to the scene, having heard the commotion.

"What the hell is that freak show?!" gasped Makoto.

"A monster of some kind!" said Minako.

"We have to help Solaris and Sailor Moon!" Ami cried. "Transform now!"

The three had just pulled out their transformation wands, but while using her omikuji backpack, Mikuji fired giant fortune-telling sticks at them. They split open and clamped tightly around the girls, pinning them to trees. Luna and Artemis were shocked.

"This thing's strong!" gasped Artemis.

"This is a whole new level of strength that we've never seen before!" said Luna.

"I think it's about time I dispose of all you troublesome kids," Mikuji smirked as she refocused her attention on Sailor Moon. "That will teach you to get in our way."

Sailor Moon struggled as she tried to get up, as Mikuji stalked her prey, ready to finish the job, but then, a rose came shooting down from above, sticking right into the Daemon's hair. Mikuji looked up to where the rose came from and saw someone standing on a cherry blossom tree. That, someone, was Tuxedo Mask.

"In the height of spring, an unwelcome monster like you brought stormy weather to an enjoyable day!" Tuxedo Mask said. "Away with you!"

"How annoying. Another pest," Mikuji scoffed. "Why don't I tell your fortune as well?"

Mikuji had set her sights on the masked crusader when a golden beam of light wrapped around her body and squeezed tightly. Mikuji, taken by surprise, looked back to where the beam came from and saw Solaris, who had his right hand raised, using his Solar Binding.

"Now, I got you!" Solaris grunted.

"Now, Sailor Moon!" Tuxedo Mask called out.

The Pretty Guardian of the Moon summoned forth her Cutie Moon Rod in response and aimed Mikuji, the end of her rod glowing with power.

"MOON PRINCESS HALATION!"

A powerful beam of light and sparkles erupted from her rod, but then came trouble. With a mighty yell, Mikuji broke free from the restraints of the Solar Binding and countered with her attack in the form of a stream of fortune-telling papers.

"BAD LUCK TRIANGLE!"

The stream of papers cut straight through the Moon Princess Halation, and before Sailor Moon could react, Mikuji's attack knocked the Cutie Moon Rod out of her hand, canceling her attack. Seizing her opportunity, Mikuji pounced straight that Sailor Moon and slammed her straight into a tree. Then, as she did with Rei, she used her hands and feet to dig into the tree and turned them to stone, pinning Sailor Moon to it. Then she opened her mouth wide and clamped her jaw onto Sailor Moon's brooch, turning her face into stone as well.

As she pulled away, detaching herself from the stone while regenerating, Sailor Moon's brooch let out a dying pink glow as her clothes burst into pink ribbons. The pink ribbons eventually reverted to the girl's civilian clothes as her compact fell to the ground. Sailor Moon, the Guardian of the Moon, was now Usagi, the helpless girl.

"What... What just happened here?" Usagi murmured, her face frozen in shock.

"Looks like your fortune says bad luck, too," mocked Mikuji. "Horrendous bad luck."

"Usako!" Tuxedo Mask cried. "Hang on!"

The masked man leaped off of his tree, only for Mikuji to fire a fortune stick at him, splitting open and clamping around his body, rendering him unable to move as he fell to the ground.

"No! Tuxedo Mask!" cried Usagi.

"I can't watch this anymore!" Luna cried. "We've got to try and help them!"

Luna and Artemis then pounced on Mikuji, scratching and clawing the Daemon, but Mikuji quickly made work of the two felines by swatting them away with her ponytail. However, as she turned towards Rei to resume her task, she was annoyed to find that Solaris now stood between her and Rei, fists raised and a determined scowl on his face.

"Solaris! Get out of there!" Ami yelled. "That monster's way too strong!"

"There's no way that you can beat her all by yourself!" cried Minako.

But Solaris refused to move as he stayed where he clenched his fists and put them up, ready to fight and protect Rei till the end. Mikuji then swung her ponytail and whipped it straight at the Guardian, but Solaris jumped into the air, shooting upwards. The Daimon seeing him go up, then fired some fortune sticks from her omikuji backpack. Solaris dipped and dodged, avoiding them all, and then shot towards the Daimon, conjuring a ball of light from his hand.

"SUNSHINE METEOR!"

The Guardian of Light gave the ball a mighty punch sending it straight towards Mikuji, but instead of hitting her, the attack hit the ground, causing a tremendous explosion. Dust billowed everywhere. Believing Mikuji was blinded by the smoke, he shot down until he was back on the ground and clenched his fist, charging up as much power as possible. Then when he had enough power, he aimed and fired with everything he had.

"ARROW OF SOL!"

Solaris unleashed a powerful arrow of flame straight towards the cloud of dust, the sheer power alone causing the ground to shake from the boom. There was a long silence as Solaris stood there, panting and heaving, feeling exhausted.

"Did I get her?" Solaris wondered, his eyes squinting.

His answer came soon enough, for right then, three fortune-telling shot out from the cloud, causing Solaris to jump to the air immediately. But then, Mikuji's ponytail came shooting out and wrapped around Solaris' legs preventing his escape, binding them tightly. The dust then cleared, revealing that Mikuji was completely unharmed.

"No way! That didn't affect her either?!" Makoto cried.

Mikuji then swung her hair around, sending Solaris on a wild ride, and slammed him on the ground, repeating this a couple of times before finishing with one more slam making Solaris cry out in agony. The Guardian of the Sun, feeling dazed, tried to get up, but Mikuji then pounced on top of him, preventing him from getting up. Then, as she did with Usagi, she turned her hands and feet into stone, clamped on his wrists and ankles, digging them deep into the dirt so that he couldn't move. Then she bit on the bracelet turning her face to stone. Not soon after, Solaris' armor began to glow and wane along with his sunstone until it faded away as he too turned back into his human self.

"Solaris!" cried Usagi. "Oh no!"

Harusuke struggled as he tried to get up, but he was so weary and battered that he couldn't move at all from his bindings.

Mikuji glanced over towards Rei again. "Now that there's no one else to get in my way, I can take my time and remove that girl's Pure Heart."

The Daemon opened up her gi once again, and the black star on her chest shot out another beam, shooting directly into her target. Rei let out another wail of agony as it resumed torturing her, while Usagi and the others could only watch in horror.

"Stop it!" yelled Usagi. "Leave her alone!"

But it was too late. Rei's eyes became unfocused, and she slumped forward, no longer screaming. At the same time, something came out of her chest, hovering just in front of her. It was a small star-shaped, pink-colored crystal with a glowing white center.

"No, Rei!" Usagi cried as she struggled, trying to break free. "You can't die, Rei! You just can't! Rei!"

But Rei didn't move, nor did she respond.

Mikuji then came over to Rei and snatched the Pure Heart from her, admiring it in her hand. "I've finally got her pure heart!" she cackled in triumph. "And according to Kaiorinite and Tomoe, there should be a powerful light inside of it."

"Give that back to her right now!" Usagi yelled as she desperately struggled to break free, her eyes flowing with tears. "You can't do this to her!"

"You're going to pay for this!" Harusuke shouted, his voice weak but filled with anger. "I swear you won't get away with this!"

Mikuji haughtily smirked, not intimidated, and was just about to leave, when suddenly, a giant earthen ball of energy came barreling straight into her catching her by surprise and causing her to stagger.

"Who the hell did that?!" Mikuji cried as she tried to recollect herself.

Then, another powerful ball of energy shot out at her, this time being in the form of water. In a matter of seconds, and with a dying scream of agony, Mikuji was no more, reverting to the Hikawa Shrine's fortune tree. No sooner than that happened, the Daimon Egg that Kaiorinite implanted came out from the tree's trunk, falling to the ground and shattering into pieces letting out a puff of smoke. The binds and stone that held Usagi and the others also disappeared, setting them all free.

Immediately, Usagi rushed over to Rei, who was now lying lifeless on the ground. "Rei! Please be all right!" the ordango cried as she took her into her arms, trying to rouse her. "Wake up! Please don't die! Rei!"

As the others rushed over, two unknown figures watched from afar from a tree. One of them held Rei's Pure Heart Crystal, wearing a Sailor Uniform. The other wore the same sailor uniform, but unlike the other, this individual wore a mask similar to Tuxedo Mask and a white cape.

"It seems that they chose the wrong target," the first one said. "I don't sense anything other than it being a Pure Heart Crystal."

"Sure seems that way," said the caped one.

Then the first one let Rei's Pure Heart Crystal go as it hovered towards where Usagi and the others were.

At this point, Usagi and the others were starting to lose hope, as they had no means of rousing her.

"No, please, no," Harusuke spoke, his voice beginning to crack. "Not again. Please, not again."

"Rei, please wake up!" Usagi begged. "Say something! Anything!"

Rei's Pure Heart came hovering into view at that moment, causing everyone to look up. The crystal began to glow as it stopped just in front of Rei, and, to everyone's amazement, it slowly melted away as it reentered Rei's body. There was a moment of silence, then the color of Rei's skin returned to normal, and her eyes fluttered open as she started coming around. Everyone couldn't help but feel overjoyed.

"Thank goodness! She's all right!" Makoto sighed with relief.

"What's going on?" wondered Rei. "You're all staring at me like I died or something."

Usagi immediately burst into tears. "Wah! Rei's alive and back to her normal mean self!" she wailed joyfully.

Harusuke stared at Rei, and before the girl could react, the boy wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly. "I was so worried," Harusuke whispered. "I was so scared that you died again."

Rei was surprised, but she returned the hug in earnest, smiling kindly. "Don't worry. I'm OK. I feel fine."

"Are you sure?!" Usagi sobbed. "Are you in any pain? Are you feeling woozy? Any discomfort? Do you want something to eat?"

Rei could only smile as she also hugged Usagi in comfort. "Come on, Usagi. Please stop crying. I'm OK."

After everyone calmed down, the cats assessed the situation.

"I'm glad that everyone is all right, but now it seems like we have a new enemy," said Luna grimly. "And it whoever sent that creature is after people with Pure Hearts."

"Not to mention that creature said something about finding something inside of them," added Artemis. "And then there was the fact that someone saved us from that thing."

"One thing's for sure," said Usagi. "It seems a new battle has begun."

"Looks that way," Harusuke agreed. "Once again, so long, normal life, hello, new enemy."

Everyone else remained silent.