Introduction: This is a story that I promised ages ago to anyone who's read my previous Sailor Moon fanfics on this site. The reason it's taken me so long to get this one off the ground is because it's turned out to be a pretty massive project. This story has the biggest cast of characters I've used yet, and it may or may not get bigger. The fact is there are things about this story I've yet to figure out in the long term. I more or less know how it's going to end, but I don't know exactly how long it's going to take to get to that ending. I am certain though that it's going to take a pretty long time to get to that ending.

In any event, I should probably mention that if you haven't yet read any of my previous Sailor Moon fanfics, you might want to go back and do so or else you might be a little confused. There is going to be some recap in this chapter, but it'd still be a good idea to go back and read at least some of those previous stories in order to fully understand what's going on.

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or the works of H.P. Lovecraft.

PRELUDE - THE GATHERING

Chapter 1: Unexpected Reunion

Minako Aino sat looking out the window of the car she was riding in, staring out at the passing mountain landscape as it drove up the road's curving slope. The driver of the car was a tall handsome young man with long silver hair. The identity of this person was Minako's new boyfriend, Keisuke Tenju. Keisuke was in fact however a former enemy of Minako's Kunzite of the Shitennou, one of the generals of the Dark Kingdom. Before he was a general of an enemy empire though, Kunzite had been one of the protectors of Minako's friend, Mamoru Chiba, and Keisuke was now once again acting in that role. It was a very odd string of events which had brought Keisuke back from the dead to serve his true purpose, and had brought him and Minako together as a couple.

Not long ago, Minako had miraculously landed the lead role in a movie in England called Bride of the Yellow King. By a very strange and unexpected twist though, Keisuke had shown up as Minako's costar in the film. Minako had soon learned that Keisuke had been brought back from the dead by a woman named Hilda Rasmussen, who was in fact an alien Sailor Guardian known as Sailor Brunhilde. The movie turned out to be an elaborate trap to make Minako the unwilling bride and servant of a malignant entity known as Hastur the Unspeakable, and it had been Keisuke and Hilda's mission to thwart the alien god. Had it not been for Keisuke, Minako would've suffered a fate far worse than death.

Keisuke glanced at Minako and noticed a gloomy expression on the blond's face. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh…I was just thinking…maybe I should give up on my dreams of becoming an idol," Minako answered.

"Why do you think so?"

"Well…it seems like every time I get a chance of becoming an idol it turns out to be an enemy trap. Granted, a couple of times I walked in knowing it was a trap to try and catch the enemy, but still…I can't help but think me becoming an idol isn't meant to be."

A serious expression came to Keisuke's face as he looked back out at the road. "Mina, I don't know much about what goes into becoming an idol, what sort of challenges one has to face, but I know you are a strong and determined woman. I'm certain if you put your mind to it, there's nothing you can't accomplish, and I will be there to support you should you need me to."

Minako's face lit up with a smile, and she immediately leaned over and kissed Keisuke on the cheek. "I really do love you, you know that?"

The conversation was interrupted by a sudden growling noise from the backseat. Minako looked back at the white cat with the gold crescent moon mark on its forehead curled up in the middle seat. This cat was in fact Minako's partner, Artemis.

"I told you Artemis, one word and you'd be spending the rest of this trip in the trunk," Minako told the feline.

"I didn't say a thing," Artemis responded with a sour look on his furry face.

Artemis had made it no secret that he disapproved of Minako's relationship with Keisuke. Part of the feline's disapproval rose from the fact Keisuke was a former enemy, but it seemed Artemis was simply inclined to act like an overprotective father or big brother when it came to Minako's relationships.

"He's still glaring at me, isn't he?" Keisuke asked, his eyes still on the road.

"Oh yeah. I haven't checked, but I wouldn't be surprised if there were two little scorch marks on the back of your headrest," Minako confirmed.

Keisuke frowned. "I imagine your friends will all have similar opinions of me. Are you sure it was a good idea for me to come with you on this trip?"

"Like I told you, if my friends have a problem with you, they'll just have to deal with it." Minako then reached over and put a hand on Keisuke's knee. "Besides…after what I've been through, I need you with me."

Keisuke smiled and put his hand over Minako's. "Of course."

Minako leaned back in her chair. "Let's not worry about what anyone else thinks of our relationship. I want us both to have fun on this trip, especially since…what happened in England might not be over."

"You mean Hilda's warning about the Old Ones? I've thought about that too. If she's right, we'll be in for another battle soon."

A big smile was on Makoto Kino's face as she sat in the passenger seat of the jeep she was riding in, looking out at the mountain range. It was such a beautiful landscape, so much more magnificent than the hilly midwestern vista where she had been days before. Driving the jeep was Makoto's new boyfriend, Nao Asaga. Nao had previously been a powerful enemy of Makoto's. However before he had been Nephrite of the Shitennou, a protector of her friend, Mamoru Chiba who had been corrupted into a general of the Dark Kingdom. A strange chain of events however had brought Nao back from the dead as the man he had previously been.

Days before, Makoto had been visiting the family home of her previous boyfriend, Austin Glenwood. Upon her arrival at Glenwood Manor though, Makoto had discovered Nao working there as a groundskeeper. She had soon learned of how Nao had been resurrected by a woman named Sandra Jacobsen, who was in fact an alien Sailor Guardian known as Sailor Sigrun. Austin also turned out to be part of an incestuous family of creatures that served an entity known as the Black Goat, and that Nao and Sandra were there to put an end to the family's plans. During this time, Makoto and Nao had realized their feelings for one another, and in the end it had been up to Makoto to save Nao from becoming a sacrifice to the Black Goat.

"Your friends certainly found a beautiful location for a vacation spot," Nao remarked as he drove down the road.

"No kidding," Makoto agreed. "This is definitely the right place for a vacation do-over."

"I have to ask though babe, did we really need to bring all this luggage?" Nao asked, motioning his head towards all of the boxes in the back seat.

"Half of it's my own personal cooking equipment. I don't know what I'll have to work with at this vacation house, and if an artist is going to create a masterpiece, she needs the proper tools."

"That I get, but a couple of those boxes felt like they had rocks in them," Nao chuckled.

"Oh, those must've been the boxes with the barbells. When I used Thor's hammer to fight Austin's family, it nearly tore my arm off. I figured I'd go ahead and try to get in a little strength training so I'll hopefully be ready the next time I need to use it."

Nao's expression turned serious. "So…you're worried about what Sandra told us about the Old Ones."

Makoto nodded, her own expression becoming grim. "She made it pretty clear this isn't over. We may not have to fight the Black Goat again, but we might have to fight something just as bad in the near future. I want to be ready when the time finally comes."

"Until then though, we should still try to have fun on this trip though, right?" Nao asked with a small smile.

"Oh, totally!" Makoto confirmed as her own smile came back. "Until the next enemy shows up, I want us both to relax, have fun, and maybe break a few bedsprings."

Nao smirked. "I think we can make that last part happen pretty easily."

Rei Hino was awakened from her sleep when the convertible sports car she was riding in hit a bump on the rugged mountain road. She had been in a light sleep for the last several minutes since her car started driving up the mountain path. Sitting in the driver's seat of the car was a young man with blond hair and a boyish handsomeness. This man was Rei's new boyfriend, Jun Aragaki. Perched on each of Jun's shoulders was one of Rei's two crows, Phobos and Deimos.

"Sorry. These damn roads aren't very smooth," Jun told Rei.

"It's okay," Rei replied with a yawn. "I didn't mean to fall asleep in the first place. By the way, I'm impressed with how Phobos and Deimos seem to have taken to you."

Jun laughed. "Must just be my natural charm. Most young ladies do find me irritable after all."

Rei rolled her eyes but smiled. She had come to like this aspect of Jun's personality…to an extent of course. It was hard to believe how Rei couldn't stand Jun before, and even more hard to believe that the two were once bitter enemies. Jun was in fact Jadeite, one of the four Shitennou who in the past protected Rei's friend, Mamoru Chiba but had been corrupted into a general of the Dark Kingdom. It was a very strange chain of events that brought Rei and Jun back together as a couple.

During a trip to visit her father, Rei ended up going to the compound of a group known as the Cydonia Foundation. Jun had been assigned to Rei as a bodyguard, along with a strange young woman who went by the name of Grete Andersen. Grete was in fact an alien Sailor Guardian known as Sailor Gunnr, and she had brought Jun back from the dead to help thwart the true goals of the Cydonia Foundation. The Foundation was in fact the organization of an old family enemy of Rei's from Mars, the Cydonian King, Thurin-Xa. Thurin-Xa had used the Foundation as a means to restore his body and help him attempt to call forth the alien god known as Cthugha.

"Anyway, you really should get some sleep when you can," Jun continued. "You probably need it after what we went through with the Foundation."

Rei nodded. "You're right, and I plan to get as much rest as I can on this trip. I just hope the time I'll have to rest won't be fleeting."

Jun frowned. "Let me guess, you're worried about what Grete said about us having to deal with more of those Old Ones. I won't lie, it's got me a little worried too."

"Well, worrying about what's to come isn't going to help anything. Let's just try and forget about it for now."

Jun nodded. "Quite frankly I'm a little more worried about how your friends are going to react to me showing up. They'll probably try to kill me on sight the way you did when you first saw me again."

"Don't worry about it. I'll handle my friends if it comes to that. If they have a problem with you, they'll have to deal with me."

Ami Mizuno sat in the passenger seat of the car she was riding in reading something on her tablet. She paid no attention at all to the surrounding mountain landscape. Driving the car was a young man with long wavy blond hair tied in a ponytail. The young man was Ami's new boyfriend, Satoru Petrov. In the past though, their relationship was quite different. Satoru's real identity was Zoisite of the Shittenou, a protector of her friend, Mamoru Chiba who had been corrupted into a general of the Dark Kingdom.

It was a truly bizarre set of circumstances which brought Ami and Satoru back together as a couple. While visiting the school of Miskatonic University as a potential starting point for her medical training, Ami encountered Satoru and a strange young woman known as Erica Larsen. Erica was in fact an alien Sailor Guardian known as Sailor Eir, and she had resurrected Satoru to help with her efforts of infiltrating an evil group known as the Knights of Dagon. In the process of trying to eliminate the Knights, Ami and Satoru ended up facing a malevolent entity known as Yog-Sothoth. They had managed to banish Yog-Sothoth to where he came from, and in the process the Knights of Dagon had been dismantled.

Satoru glanced over at Ami. "What exactly have you been reading?"

"Research I've had the castle computer of my mother planet gather," Ami answered, not looking up from the screen. "Specifically anything it could find even remotely related to Cthulhu or the other Old Ones Erica mentioned. So far though I've found very little data that could be considered useful."

"I understand and share your concerns about the Old Ones, Ami. But perhaps it might be best to put your research aside for now. This is supposed to be sort of a vacation for us."

"Yes, I suppose you're right," Ami responded as she smiled and shut off her tablet. "We should relax and enjoy ourselves when we can. Though…I can't help but notice you seem a bit nervous."

"I'm just a little on edge about meeting your friends again. I still don't think they'll be fine with a former enemy suddenly dropping in as a guest."

"You let me worry about my friends. But…if you're really worried about it so much, perhaps I could help you relax a little before we get there."

Ami reached over and put her hand on Satoru's crotch. To his surprise, she had begun to undo his zipper. His member was already starting to rise to attention as Ami's hand reached into his pants.

"Um, there's a good spot to pull over for a bit!" Satoru declared as he quickly pulled off the road.

Minako and Keisuke were the first to arrive at the vacation house, which turned out to be a fairly impressive-looking two-story mansion with white walls. While it was no sprawling estate, the house looked as though it had more than enough room for the entire Sailor Team and their respective paramours. The other three cars soon arrived as Minako and Keisuke got out with Artemis, with Ami and Satoru being the last to arrive. In moments, the other couples got out of their cars, and once everyone began to gather in a circle to meet up, they all froze when they realized there were far more people than expected. It took a mere few seconds for everyone to notice how Minako and Keisuke were holding hands, how Jun had an arm around Rei's shoulder, how Makoto and Nao had their hands in each other's back pocket, and how Ami was holding Satoru's hand in hers.

There was an unspoken but collective "Oh," among those gathered together. Artemis had quickly picked up on how each of the Inners had paired up with one of the Shitennou and couldn't help but hiss, with his back arched and his fur standing on end.

Ami was the first to speak. "We probably should've all seen this coming."

"Yeeaaah," Minako responded. "Let me guess, you all hooked up with each other while fighting some unspeakable alien god."

"That pretty much sums it up," Makoto confirmed.

"You aren't going to try and chastise us all, are you now Commander?" Nao asked Keisuke with a cocky smirk.

"Clearly not," Keisuke responded. "It's a far different time now. Any relationships we might have with the Sailor Guardians would not be taboo."

"Clearly you and Sailor Venus, or rather Minako don't seem worried about such things anymore," Jun observed.

"It seems we've all had very similar experiences before coming here," Satoru deduced. "Perhaps it would be best if we compare notes."

"Great idea, but not out here," Minako decided. "Let's go into the house first."

The others quickly agreed to this and headed for the house. Minako quickly found the key in a potted plant next to the door, just where Haruka said it would be in her texts. In a few moments, the eight had gathered in the mansion's living room with Artemis. Rei had opened a window so Phobos and Deimos could perch on the little tree right outside and listen in. Once everyone had sat down, each couple took turns recounting the details of their respective exploits, though Rei ended up leaving out the specific details of Thurin-Xa and his connection to her family from her past life, allowing Jun to do most of the talking.

"…Okay, so the short version is Keisuke and other others were all resurrected by a Sailor Valkyrie to help fight one of these Old Ones or at least their minions," Minako summarized. "And, elephant in the room, I know the real reason why Keisuke was brought back from the dead, and I'm guessing the others were brought back for the same reason."

"That would seem to be the case," Ami confirmed.

"Rei, I have to say I'm kind of surprised you and Jun…hooked up," Minako noted. "I mean, I know how you feel about men."

"Jun is different," Rei responded. "And if you really need to know about…what Jun and I did…I did it mainly to save his life. Not that it wasn't enjoyable."

Makoto suddenly began to snicker. "Did…did he suffer from a really bad snake bit or something?"

"NO!" Rei responded as her face turned bright red. "Get your mind out of the gutter!"

Jun cleared his throat. "You know, maybe we should focus more on what each of the Sailor Valkyries told us before they left."

"I agree," Keisuke responded. "Hilda told Minako and I that the Old Ones weren't finished. I assume each of you received the same message."

"Essentially. Ami was even attempting to do research on the way here in preparation for these future encounters," Satoru revealed.

"There's one thing that concerns me above all," Ami interjected. "Erica told us the only one who could truly defeat Cthulhu, the Old One the Knights of Dagon worshiped, was Sailor Moon."

"Grete told Jun and I the same thing," Rei recalled.

"Ditto," Makoto responded.

Minako nodded. "Keisuke and I heard the same thing from Hilda regarding Hastur, but I don't like it! I don't know about the rest of you, but I came up close and personal to Hastur. The last thing we need is for Usagi to come anywhere near that thing!"

"I have to agree with Mina. Sailor Moon fighting the Old Ones personally would likely put our Prince in danger," Keisuke pointed out. "I for one cannot allow such a thing to happen."

"This is a point we can all agree on," Nao interjected.

Makoto nodded. "Usagi went through too much battling Galaxia, and the last thing any of us want is for Mamoru to end up getting killed again."

"Then it looks like we're on the same page," Minako decided. "We have to find a way to destroy the Old Ones without Usagi or Mamoru getting involved."

"We should take this matter up with Haruka, Michiru and Setsuna when they arrive," Ami recommended.

"I just hope they're up to helping us," Makoto remarked. "I don't know what they went through in Paris, but it seems like it was big. I mean Hotaru had a growth spurt from a little kid to being seventeen!"

Ami put a hand on her chin. "I wonder…perhaps Haruka and the others also had some sort of encounter with the Old Ones in Paris. Hotaru's growth spurt was probably in response to a major threat."

"These Sailor Guardians of the outer planets certainly sound interesting," Satoru remarked.

"I'm kind of looking forward to meeting them," Nao interjected. "Of course they might try to kill us guys the moment they see us."

"Well, we can worry about Haruka and the others and what they've gone through when they get here," Minako told them. "Right now I think there's a bigger issue we need to resolve, the sleeping arrangements. With the guys here, there might not be quite enough rooms for everyone."

"You serious Mina?" Makoto asked with a raised eyebrow. "I assumed each couple would take a room. I mean Nao and I planned to share a bed."

"Okay, yeah. Keisuke and I planned the same thing. I just thought a few of us might feel differently. Rei? You fine with sharing a room with Jun?"

"Of course," Rei answered. "It'd be ridiculous for Jun and I to stay in separate rooms given we've already…done it. Besides, I…I want him near me."

Minako couldn't help but smirk. "Okay, Ami? Any problems sharing a room with Satoru?"

"Not at all," Ami answered. "Like Rei said, it's clear all of our relationships have already reached the physical level. Staying in separate rooms would be pointless, not to mention impractical if any of us have the desire for… sexual gratification."

"I do hope our room's soundproof though," Satoru whispered.

"What was that?" Minako asked.

"Nothing!" Satoru responded as both he and Ami blushed.

"Okay, it's settled!" Minako enthusiastically declared as she stood from her chair. "Let's get our bags in here and pick out some rooms!"

"NO WAY!" Artemis furiously interrupted. "Absolutely not! Now it was one thing for the Shitennou to bed you in order to save your lives, but I can't allow you to…"

Before Artemis could finish, Minako, Makoto and Rei had all thrown pillows in the feline's face. Even Ami was glaring down at him.

"Artemis, this is none of your business!" Minako told him.

"Well I'm sorry, but I still have some concerns about your new boyfriends," Artemis responded. "Until not long ago, they were the enemy!"

"You do know we were under a witch's spell at the time, right?" Nao pointed out.

"Maybe so, but that doesn't erase your past actions!" Artemis responded. "It will take some time for you all to gain my trust."

"You know Artemis, Phobos and Deimos don't have a problem with Jun," Rei pointed out.

"Who cares what those two think!" Artemis responded. "Those two are literally a couple of birdbrains!"

The feline's comment immediately caught the attention of both Phobos and Deimos. The two crows flew into the room and began pecking at Artemis's head relentlessly. Artemis cried out and ran in circles trying to shake the crows, but Phobos and Deimos stuck to him like Velcro.

"Perhaps we should help him?" Ami suggested.

"Let's give it five minutes," Minako responded. "Then maybe."

Please review and let me know what you think.