Subject: [Fanfic - SM - Secrets 1 - corrected] Date: Sun, 04 Jan 1998 19:51:13 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan (file attached. Minor silly errors corrected). -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- This is my fifth Sailor Moon fan fiction story. Just as a warning, this story brings together events and themes from my previous four. In chronological order, they are: The Four Horsemen Frozen Time Kiss of the Enemy Under a Cloud It's not necessary to have read them to understand what is going on, I haven't made any big changes from the continuity in the TV series. But there are references to events in the previous stories that might be a bit confusing without having read them. Most of this story takes place after the end of the TV series, and it is *full* of spoilers, so be warned if you haven't seen the whole series. I use the character names from the original Japanese series, not the English dub. I would probably give the story a PG-13 rating for violence and adult content. I'd like to mention some unusual punctuation I use in the text. As is normal in plan ASCII text I indicate italics with asterisks, *like this.* There are places where I indicate non-verbal communication with double asterisks, **like this.** As to what this non-verbal communication is ... you'll see soon enough. I couldn't resist using some Japanese words in a few places, so for those unfamiliar with these words, here's a really short translation dictionary: baka - fool, idiot. onisan/onisama - elder brother (also term of respect) onesan/onesama - elder sister (also term of respect) senpai - upperclassman, senior (term of respect) obatarian - crabby old lady ... basically an old battle axe kami - god (either a shinto god, or gods in general) Name suffixes: -chan - casual, used mostly between women -kun - casual, used mostly between men -san/sama - formal honorific This story contains characters created by Naoko Takeuchi. All the usual fanfic disclaimers apply. Secrets Chapter 1 - Galaxia's Shadow "This must surely be the ugliest city in all the galaxy," K'Theelm said. "Careful, Tony," Thetan said, using K'Theelm's assumed name. He glanced nervously around the noisy, crowded cafe. The noon hour rush was in full swing. They were in a small booth next to the big window looking out onto the street. "Are you afraid somebody might overhear us?" K'Theelm said, reverting to their native language. "Well, this way they'll just assume we're a pair of foreigners speaking in our inscrutable language." "Yes, I suppose ... " K'Theelm smiled. "Besides, we can barely hear each other, who do you think could overhear?" "Granted. Ugly or not, it is certainly the noisiest place I have ever lived in." "Is that why you moved into a monastery?" Thetan actually smiled, something he did rarely these days. He was a big man, nearly two meters, stocky and well muscled. His shaved head and monk's robes made him stand out all the more in this bustling crowd of people in business suits. But he didn't stand out half as much as if he hadn't been wearing the glamour. The one that made him look more or less like a caucasian Earthling. K'Theelm himself wore the appearance of a tall, wiry brown-skinned man with tightly curled hair cut short. His features made it difficult to guess his racial origins, most would have guessed Arab or southern European or some combination thereof. Like Thetan's assumed appearance, his was one likely to get a second glance from many people. Hide in plain sight, that was the idea. "Anyway, what prompted you to suddenly comment on the city's appearance?" Thetan asked. "Just the irony of it, I suppose. The city seems to be a tribute to chaos. Hardly a place we would expect to find a great power of order." Thetan nodded. "Yet that power is here. Even after a year I still feel it, fresh as when we first arrived." Yes, when they first arrived. K'Theelm was aura mute, but Thetan and Jeneth described the feeling upon approaching the planet as overwhelming. Even from deep space, to their aura sense Tokyo had shone brighter than the sun. Somewhere here was the force that just might stand against the coming storm. K'Theelm finished off his coffee, and saw that Thetan was done with his tea. "Perhaps we should be going," he said, noting people lined up at the entrance. He preceded Thetan, paying their bill on the way out. They walked in silence for a few minutes, until they came to a slightly less crowded street. "Has Jeneth felt any more disturbances?" the big warrior asked. "Not that she's told me," K'Theelm replied. "She's been rather consumed by a couple of cases she's involved with." Thetan sighed, the sound from deep in his chest almost a rumble. "Ah, her errands of mercy." K'Theelm raised an eyebrow. He had never heard their leader utter a disparaging remark about the healer. He could guess the source of his friend's frustration. "You gave your blessing to her work, do you regret that?" "No, I can't fault her for seeking small victories over the darkness. I'm hardly in a position to criticize," he said with a crooked smile, gesturing at his monk's robes. K'Theelm took his meaning. Thetan had found some comfort in the Zen Buddhist temple he had joined months ago. Perhaps comfort enough not to dwell on the blasted earth that covered the ruins of his own order's temples, so far away. "I suppose we are all trying not to think too hard of what is coming," K'Theelm said. "Yes. It goes against the grain, this trusting in fate. But I still think that Jeneth is right. It was grandiose tampering with the old powers that brought about this catastrophe. Fighting fire with fire just makes it worse. Even if we could make a difference ..." K'Theelm's thoughts suddenly flew back to the final day of their homeworld, the day they watched Galaxia's twisted Avatars carve through their armies, destroying in hours what had taken millennia to build. Thetan was right, they could hardly hope to make a difference in what was to come. He felt Thetan suddenly give him a friendly slap on the back. The symbiont embedded there made its displeasure known through their neural link. The cut of K'Theelm's suit was made carefully to hide the slight hunchbacked look it gave him, there was only so much you could do with glamours. "Enough about the fate of the galaxy, K'Theelm. It has been days since we talked, tell me what more you have learned of this strange and wonderful world we have flown to." K'Theelm felt himself relax already, glad for the diversion. "I've been trying to learn more about these electronic devices they are so fond of. I purchased one of those general purpose digital computing machines I told you about. I was able to connect it to a global communications network right from our apartment. The technology is crude, but it's remarkable what they've achieved with it. It's almost like a virtual world laid on top of the physical one, with its own cultures and families spanning continents." "And all this with just electronic devices?" Thetan asked. "I would hardly have thought it possible." "That's the remarkable part. It's all based just on electricity and solid state physics. No biotechnology, no psionic devices, no quantum crystals, no telepathic enhancers, none of that." "Hmmm," Thetan's basso voice sounded a low rumble. "Sounds like quite the Engineer's paradise, you must be delighted." K'Theelm chuckled. "The Engineer Caste triumphant? Yes, that's what I thought at first. But what passes for engineering here, it just seems hopelessly myopic. I mean, look at this," they stopped before the window of an electronics store, and he gestured to a bank of televisions on display, all showing the same image of a newscaster. "Those images are sent here by a colossal, immensely powerful radio wave transmitter, probably that one over there." He pointed to the top of the Tokyo Tower, just visible over a neighbouring building. "On our world, the same thing would be done with a set of resonating quantum crystals, all slaved to one master crystal. Those crystals are grown in little vats, but these television sets ... the factories they make them in are a mile long." "Sounds like an allegory of their history. Earthmen seem to delight in taking the thorniest road, whatever their journey." K'Theelm thought about that for a moment. "Perhaps they're somehow compensating for living on such a benign world. Despite all they are doing to it, this earth is a paradise, more fertile than anything I've ever heard of." "You wouldn't think so from standing on these miles of concrete, but you're right. The web of life on our own world was so much more fragile. If we had taken this path, tried to live like this, it would surely have all collapsed." Mention of their world was like a shadow passing over them. K'Theelm didn't feel like thinking about that right now. "At least here they seem to take good care of what little green space remains, almost obsessively. Speaking of which, I found a remarkable garden not far from here, perhaps we should go visit there." Thetan smiled and nodded. He made a move to continue on their way, then hesitated. A shadow passed over his face again. He was staring at the bank of televisions. K'Theelm turned to look. There was a different newscaster now, a young woman framed by a blank background. K'Theelm was shocked by her expression. She was trying hard to hold on to her cool detachment, but he could see that she was terrified. They could not hear what she was saying through the store window. Feeling a sudden dread, K'Theelm thought he should go inside and ask somebody to turn up the sound on one of the sets. "K'Theelm, look." The warrior's voice was expressionless. But K'Theelm knew better, could hear the undercurrents of tension that not even his discipline could hide entirely. Thetan was pointing up to the sky. K'Theelm looked up and his whole world collapsed. Dark clouds were forming at an unnatural, hellish speed, wherever he looked. What had been a clear blue sky was blotted out in a matter of seconds, and the city was plunged into sudden darkness. "It can't be, not so soon," he breathed. Then the first flash of lightning came, as he knew it would, lighting up the unnatural purple clouds. It was not the clear white light of a natural thunderstorm, but a sick blood-red bolt of jagged snake lightning that seemed to leave unfathomable blackness in its wake. The thunder was muted, as if the air had suddenly grown thick. It was followed by another bolt, and another, now coming more quickly. "It has begun," Thetan said. People around them were starting to panic. Some were rushing into buildings, some were rushing out of them, all equally certain that some place, any place must be safer than where they were standing now. Traffic had stalled as people either abandoned their vehicles or just leaned out their windows to stare up at the impossible sky. The televisions caught K'Theelm's eye again, and he spasmed as if he had been stabbed. "Thetan," he croaked. It was Galaxia. The images of her sneering lips moved silently in perfect unison. He didn't need the words to know what she was saying. She was gleefully explaining to the people of Earth that she was their new master, that they would all give up their lives to her. "We have to go to Jeneth," Thetan said. K'Theelm just shook his head. His symbiont was bleeding off his excess adrenaline, taking the tension out of his body. But his mind was still screaming. "She's at Sanno Hospital ... trying to get there through this chaos-" "It doesn't matter, we'll fly. Prepare yourself." He wanted to protest that somebody might see. But that was unlikely, given what was happening. And it hardly mattered now. "I understand," he said, acknowledging that he understood it to be an order. He ordered the symbiont to generate the field. The air around them seemed to ripple like disturbed water, and they were enveloped in a shimmering translucent globe. Colours played across it like a soap bubble. But they could see through it well enough, even in the preternatural darkness. He directed the symbiont to cloak them as best it could. They could not be made invisible, but to outside observers they were now little more than a nebulous heat shimmer. The feeling of weightlessness came, and they slowly lifted into the sky. It really didn't matter at this point if people saw them. But there was another whose attention he would avoid at all cost. With increasing speed they flew to join their companion. K'Theelm flew as low as he dared. He had no idea whether that did any good, but he felt better close to the ground, as far from those clouds as possible. "She begins to take their Star Seeds," Thetan said. K'Theelm, concentrating on weaving between the buildings, only spared brief glances to their sides. Sure enough, some of the lightning was now reaching down to the ground. No doubt Thetan was feeling what he could not: the people having their very souls ripped from them, their Star Seeds drifting up to go complete Galaxia's collection. K'Theelm had been to this hospital with Jeneth several times before, so he had little difficulty locating it, even from the air. He dropped them into a rear loading dock area. He withdrew the shield and without a word they ran around to a side entrance. They dropped to a brisk walk as they approached the nurse's station in the section he knew Jeneth to be. He didn't want to alarm them ... though that hardly seemed a consideration now. People around them were obviously aware of what was going on outside. The staff went about their duties briskly and solemnly, as if determined to pretend that it was just business as usual. "I'm here to see doctor Constantine," K'Theelm informed the nurse. She spared a quick, annoyed glance at the towering monk. K'Theelm recalled that buddhist priests officiated at funerals here. For many people they had an unfortunate association with death, so they were not a welcome sight at hospitals. The nurse looked back at K'Theelm. "I'm sorry, she is with a patient right now, you'll-" "Nurse," Thetan growled, getting her attention and looking her straight in the eye. "Listen closely. This is professor Anthony Harth, a specialist with whom Doctor Constantine needs to consult. Doctor Constantine has instructed you to bring him to her the moment he arrives, along with his companion." The nurse blinked several times. Then her blank expression broke, and she was suddenly all flustered. "Oh, Professor Harth ... yes, Doctor Constantine has been expecting you ... right this way please." "Thank you," K'Theelm said. They followed the nurse down the corridor. He glanced at Thetan, but his friend's face was expressionless. K'Theelm knew he considered such tricks a misuse of his powers. Right now they didn't have time to ponder the ethics of mind control. The nurse pointed them to a closed door, bowed and left them. Thetan opened the door and they entered, both taking care to make no unnecessary noise. K'Theelm quietly closed the door behind them and locked it. He walked over to join Thetan near the foot of the room's single bed. Jeneth sat by the bed, holding her patient's hand and watching her face intently. Her glamour presented the form of an attractive caucasian woman with flaming red hair worn loosely around her shoulders and expressive, emerald green eyes. Like those of her companions hers was an ageless face, perhaps somebody in her thirties. Her slim form was covered by a long white lab coat. She had not acknowledged their presence in any way. Her patient was a young girl, asleep or unconscious. Her hairless scalp, sallow face and withered body all indicated the extent of her sickness, and the desperate measures being used to combat it. There were intravenous feeds and monitoring machines arrayed along the other side of the bed, but the girl was no longer connected to any of them. Jeneth was applying a quite different form of healing. The two of them waited silently for several minutes. K'Theelm could hear the muted thunder from outside. The lights flickered once or twice, no doubt a side effect of the colossal energies Galaxia was unleashing upon the city. The hospital could very well be under its own power by now. Presently, Jeneth broke contact with the girl. She took a slow breath and sighed deeply. She took two more deep breaths, then finally turned to her companions. "So it has begun," she said. "Yes, healer," Thetan answered. "We should leave this place right away." Jeneth shook her head, gestured to her patient. "I am not done with her yet. She will need me again in a few minutes, to complete her treatment. Then I must observe her for hours more." "Jeneth, she already takes their Star Seeds. It is only a matter of time before we are found out. And even if we survive the feeding, her corrupted Avatars cannot be far behind." Jeneth nodded incrementally. "I know. I can feel what is happening, just as you can. But tell me, where is there to run?" "She must be seeking out the power of order that we found here, for now she only attacks this city." Thetan still sounded calm, but K'Theelm could once again hear the undercurrents of tension, he was desperate to take his friends to safety. "No doubt. And when she finds that power, either it will defeat her, or she will consume it. If the latter, then it will no longer matter where we are." She spoke while sitting calmly, hands folded in her lap. Part of that would be the inward focus she required while in the process of a healing. K'Theelm had grown used to her unshakable poise, but still marvelled at how she could calmly sit there and discuss the ultimate victory of chaos. "Jeneth, the battle you speak of could start any moment and will unleash powers beyond comprehension. The farther we are from this place, the better." "I wish to remain with my patient." In her unwavering stare was the question she did not need to ask: *Will you make it an order?* K'Theelm glanced at Thetan. His expression was unreadable. After a brief pause, Thetan nodded. "Very well, we will remain." None of them contemplated or discussed the possibility of them leaving Jeneth behind. Thetan turned to K'Theelm. "Pilot, I believe our chances of escaping Galaxia's power will be greater if you put a cloak about us. Make it one that you can maintain indefinitely, I don't want you draining your power." "It won't be a very effective cloak." "It will have to do." K'Theelm nodded, then went to stand beside Jeneth, who was still sitting quietly, preparing herself for the next step in the healing. He linked with his symbiont, and once again a shimmering sphere formed in the air around them. It was a larger one, encompassing the four of them, and looked like little more than a heat shimmer. It would cloak their lifeforce to some degree. Perhaps enough to make Galaxia's power pass them by. He and Thetan stood by their companion, and they all silently listened to the muffled thunder. "Am I being selfish, Thetan?" Thetan looked to her and frowned. "Healer ... ?" Her stoic expression had softened somewhat. "Is it just hubris on my part, seeking these small victories against the darkness?" Thetan's expression also softened as he shook his head, slipping out of his role as commander. "No, healer. I believe the attempt alone is a victory. The small kindnesses done in the dark, the ones that nobody will ever sing of, those are the most precious." He smiled. "But you taught me this yourself, Jeneth, why do you ask me?" She returned his smile. "Perhaps because I find my friend's voice comforting." She turned to her other companion. "K'Theelm, your aura is wavering, are you overextending yourself?" He shook his head. "No, healer. The trip here was taxing, but this shield - such as it is - I can maintain as long as required." Or until one of those soul crushing bolts crashes into us. "Then if you will both excuse me, I will continue." They watched her carefully take the frail young girl's hand and once again stare into her tiny face. Had he not been making every effort to conserve energy K'Theelm could have tapped into his symbiont senses, seen some of the side effects of the energy Jeneth was wielding. The power itself was invisible to him, that was a world open only to his two friends. For quite different purposes, the adepts of the Warrior and Healer Castes tapped into the arcane powers that flowed between this plane of existence and its neighbours. As an Engineer, K'Theelm concerned himself strictly with what happened on this plane. They watched over Jeneth as she continued her work. Once they heard a clap of thunder that seemed to be right on top of them, followed by a barely audible scream from the hallway outside. Galaxia taking another victim. They could still hear the occasional voice or set of footfalls go past their room, people valiantly trying to continue with their work. "These people, they know nothing of the other worlds," K'Theelm commented when Jeneth was resting again. "They have no idea what is happening to them. That must make it worse, even than it was for us." They had at least heard rumours of the fall of other worlds, of Galaxia's onslaught, before their own world had come under attack. "It's not just that," Jeneth said. "They don't even understand the power hidden in their own worlds, in their own souls, or how that power could unleash something like ... this. How could they, without their Avatars as examples?" Thetan grunted. "Yet we know that one of their Avatars lives." Jeneth nodded. What but an Avatar could contain the power that had drawn them here? "It still puzzles me, how they could be here and none be aware of them." "I have an idea about that." They both looked to K'Theelm, who suddenly felt awkward. Now that he had broached the subject, he was unsure. But he could hardly stay silent now. "The forces of chaos that have been unleashed on this city since we arrived, the ones we feared were Galaxia's vanguard ... they were beaten back by something." Thetan nodded. They could hardly forget. Once the city seemed to be draped in shadow and spiderwebs, dripping with malevolent energy. Then it was as if all the mirrors in the city had become black holes, sucking in the souls of the unwary. Each time, something had turned the tide, beaten back the forces of chaos that threatened to consume them. "It's not just those two times either. I've read of other reports in the local news literature. Creatures which they pass off as phantoms from their mythical past have attacked people here. Always here, in this city that glows like a beacon even from deep space." "I've read of those myself," Jeneth said. "Do you think there's something to them?" "There's a common thread that runs through many of them. A set of mythical figures known as the Sailor Senshi." Thetan and Jeneth looked at each other. Of course they had heard of the Sailor Senshi. Anyone who worked with children as Jeneth did for any time could hardly help but hear of them, it seemed to be one of the most popular fairy tales, at least here. Jeneth was the first to make the connection. "K'Theelm, are you suggesting they could be ... ?" He nodded. "The Avatars." He could imagine the image what was going through his friends' minds right now. An image of a group of young girls in colourful skirts standing before Galaxia and her legions. Thetan sighed. "If you are right ... Heaven help us all." K'Theelm smiled ghoulishly. "It was not my intention to dash your hopes." Thetan chuckled. "I could think of worse things to put my faith in ... pretty young girls whose exploits are the delight of children." "We know that one of them possesses power unlike anything that has ever stood against Galaxia," Jeneth said. "They may surprise us. "Your pardon, I must tend my patient again." They stood watch over Jeneth and her charge again. The day passed. At one point there was a colossal explosion that rattled the windows, and the lights went out. Jeneth continued her work in the dim glow of K'Theelm's shield. While she was resting again, Galaxia's shadow suddenly lifted. The room was brightened ever so slightly by the sunlight that now crept in around the drawn curtains. To them, it was like a glorious sunrise. And the thunder which had long since passed into the backs of their minds stopped, leaving a silence that was shocking and wonderful. Almost without thinking, K'Theelm dropped his shield. Thetan walked to the window and drew the curtains, letting the early evening sun flood the room. K'Theelm looked unbelievingly at the blue sky. "Jeneth ... is it over?" Jeneth released the young girl's hand and smiled up at her friend. "Yes, I'm done. She still has a long recovery ahead of her, poor girl. But I'm sure she'll be fine." K'Theelm and Thetan looked at each other. For a variety of reasons, they both started to laugh. ***** Shoji brought his motorcycle to a halt in front of the gate that gave entrance to the grounds of his mother's house. As always, the great sliding iron gates were closed. He rang the buzzer, flipped up the visor of his helmet and winked at the camera, flashing a peace sign. Whoever answered the call didn't say anything through the intercom but must have recognized him, for shortly the gates started to open. He flipped the visor back down, gunned the engine and sped down the winding gravel road that led up the slope to the house. He cleared the woods and came onto the wide lawn that surrounded the big house. There would be space in the garages, but it was a clear day so he just parked his bike where the road widened out in front of the house. He removed his helmet, hung it on the handlebar and ran his hand through his coppery red hair a couple if times. Not that it did much to tame the unruly mop. He could see people working in the garden and a few of the children flying a kite on the lawn. The latter looked rather more interesting. He zipped open his black leather jacket to let the afternoon breeze cool him a bit and headed that way. There were happy cries of "Shoji-onisan!" from the older ones as he approached. They were the only ones he would know well, it had been years since he lived here. Some of the younger ones he was just barely able to attach names to. "Hey everyone, long time no see," he called as a couple of them came running out to greet him. He grabbed one of the boys and hoisted him up onto his shoulder. "Oof! By the First Ancestor, you've grown. Next year I won't be able to do that." Not wanting a sore shoulder all night he lowered the boy back down onto the ground. The boy was grinning, basking in the attention of his older cousin. "Shoji took the Ancestors' name in vain again." one of the girls said to another in a conspiratorial voice that really wasn't meant to be hidden at all. "Grownup's privilege," Shoji said, walking over and tousling her hair. She squealed and sidestepped away from him. The others ignored her and gathered around. Some of the younger ones had walked over too, curious about this cool cousin they'd heard about, the one who lived among the outsiders. "Did you bring us anything from Tokyo?" one asked. "Sorry, not this time. I'm just here to talk with my mom for a bit, I won't be staying long." There was a chorus of "Awww...." Then one of the younger ones asked "Shoji onisan, have you really been to Hokkaido?" "Yep, I've been to our house there lots of times." "Is it true the Matriarch has horns?" The older kids all groaned and one of them pulled the boy's cap down over his eyes. Shoji just laughed. "I've never seen her grow horns but you never know." Feeling some sympathy for the boy and wanting to divert attention from his gaffe, Shoji looked over to the three boys who were still standing some distance away. "So who's flying the kite today?" "Gen," four different voices chorused. Shoji and his fan club walked over to them. Even if he hadn't recognized Gen, Shoji could see who was doing the work. Little Gen stood stock still, his arms held rigid at his sides, his fists clenched. His brow was furrowed and beads of sweat trickled down his face. He was tensed up a little too much, but at least his face wasn't flushed, he was more or less in control. Shoji followed the boy's gaze up to the kite that fluttered about twenty meters overhead. The kite danced and bobbed in the breeze. But the stone it was tied to by the short string floated unmoving in the air, exactly where Gen was holding it. Shoji nodded approvingly. "Nice and steady. How long?" One of the girls, acting every part the official timekeeper, looked carefully at her stopwatch and solemnly declared "Thirteen minutes and twenty ... *three* seconds." "Not too shabby at all." Telekinesis wasn't Shoji's strong point, he hadn't been able to do half that good at Gen's age. A very familiar thirteen year old girl materialized above him and went into a ballistic freefall. **Senpai!** she called out as she slammed into him and wrapped her arms around his neck. Shoji absorbed the impact and fell down onto his back. Only an instinctive burst of levitation stopped the landing from being very painful. A couple of the children just barely dove out of the way on time. **Senpai!** she cried again, practically choking him. As always her telepathic voice was clear and bright, washing through his mind like springwater. Just as he imagined her real voice would be, if she had one. **Hi, Yui-chan** he returned, smiling and gently returning her embrace. She let him go and pushed herself up, straddling his chest. **I saw you from the house, nobody told me you were coming today!** **Mom asked me to come see her, I just got here.** "She should be more careful," one of the other girls said in a huff. Shoji focused carefully, sending his message only to that girl. **That's very rude. Use telepathy when Yui is here.** The girl was startled. No doubt having heard how protective Shoji was of Yui, she transmitted back a clear feeling of apology. Shoji lifted Yui up, sat her a little further back then levered himself up so that she was in his lap. **And what has my favourite girl been doing today?** She pouted **Kaori-mama was trying to teach me sign language again. So that I can talk to the animals. It was really boring.** Ah. He had an idea of what he and his mother would be discussing. Not that he hadn't already guessed. **Not animals, Yui. Outsiders.** **I don't call them animals when Kaori-mama is around,** she said in a huff, implying he should give her some credit for brains. **Well, you really shouldn't call them that at all. Come on, let's go into the house.** She got up off him, but wrapped her hands around his arm as soon as he had picked himself up off the ground. **Aren't you going to stay and see how long Gen will go?** the timekeeper asked. She looked not at all pleased by the way Yui had suddenly monopolized his attention. **I'll just watch from the house. Be sure to mark down his time, that's your responsibility.** She smiled proudly and nodded, mollified somewhat. **How come just Yui gets to go with Shoji-onisan?** One of the young boys asked. **'Cause I'm his girlfriend, that's why!** Yui said, making everybody jump with the vehemence of her inner voice. Even Gen's floating stone wavered a bit. Shoji smiled. A couple of the boys here were nearly her age, but she made it clear even to them that they were out of her league. Shoji waved goodbye, and they started walking over to the house. He smiled fondly down at Yui, who was still two heads shorter than him. She had taken to wearing very tight jeans now, emphasizing that her figure was becoming a little less boyish. And she was letting her hair grow a bit longer now, the straight jet black hair bobbed around her shoulders. It still looked very cute. **So is my mom really getting on your case?** **All the time!** she said, pouting again. **If it's not that stupid sign language, then it's going on and on about how nice the outsiders really are.** **Some of them really are nice, Yui-chan. And you can't talk to any of them like this, you know.** **Hmph. Most of *them* don't know sign language either, so what's the point?** **Most of the deaf ones do.** **Yeah, but there's hardly any of them, just like there's only one of me.** Shoji grinned. **Yep, you're unique alright, that's why I love you.** Yui's eyes sparkled. **So when are you going to marry me?** **Maybe when your breasts get a little bigger.** **SENPAI!** She jumped back and then leaped into him, knocking him down on the ground again. This time, there was some telekinesis backing up her momentum. But this time he was more prepared, so the result was much the same as last time. He laughed merrily, something that came out both as sound and as a telepathic signal, deftly blocking the half-hearted blows she rained down on him. **Meanie! Meanie! Meanie! Meanie!** **Shoji, are you teasing Yui-chan again?** They stopped their grappling, recognizing the familiar voice. They turned to see Kaori standing in front of the main door, her arms crossed, a friendly smile on her face. Shoji grinned. **Hi mom.** **Hi Kaori-mama** The two of them untangled themselves from each other and stood up as Kaori walked over to them. She was a tall woman with a very beautiful heart-shaped face and wavy black hair that cascaded down over her shoulders and back. As was her habit she wore a plain kimono. Even her very conservative dress could not hide her ample figure, which would be the envy of women much younger than her. **You're both looking very energetic,** she said. **I'm not surprised to see that Yui intercepted you even before you got to the house.** **Well of course. He's my boyfriend, after all.** Kaori raised an eyebrow. **I see.** She had only a hint of a smile. Shoji knew that look. Time for business. **Yui-chan, Mom and I have to talk about some boring family stuff, I'll talk to you later, okay?** Yui didn't like being sent away, but the promise to see her later kept her happy. **Okay. I'll be in my room, so I'll see you there.** She waved and vanished. The teleport made a barely audible pop. "She's gotten a lot better at that," Shoji commented. Kaori nodded. "That's one thing she doesn't seem to mind practicing." "She's got a lot finer control over her TK too," Shoji said, reaching through his open jacket to rub the back of his shoulder where it had hit the ground. "Yes, she's coming along very well," Kaori said. She turned slightly and gestured towards the door. "Shall we go into the house?" "Sure." Shoji followed his mother towards the house. This wing of the house, like the others beside and behind it, had a style that owed more to modernity than tradition. The first level, mostly shared living space, was floor to ceiling windows almost all the way around. It was surrounded by an open hardwood patio that Shoji knew went all around the complex. The patio was covered all around by a roof supported on plain wood beams. The second story, mostly private bedrooms and suites, had painted walls and smaller windows, but some had large glass doors opening onto open patios. The roof was flat, the lines simple and clean with no ornamentation. "I don't think we've made any changes since you were last here," Kaori said as she walked across the patio from the steps to the great double doors that led into the house. "That was just a couple of weeks ago, mom," Shoji said, noting the implication that he didn't come here often enough. She smiled. "Yes, it was, wasn't it?" She opened one of the doors and they walked into the spacious foyer. The doors opened onto a tile floor. All around them, two wide, shallow wooden steps led up to the level of the hardwood floor of the foyer. The smoked glass windows to either side of the doors let the sunlight brighten the room. Shoji sat on the steps and removed his boots as his mother changed into her indoor slippers. "Lots of people out today," he said, noting that there were many slippers in the bin to one side but not too many sets of shoes laid out on the floor. "Yes, it's such a nice day, most everybody is either on the grounds or gone on an outing." "That's good, people here need to get out more." Again, that merest hint of a smile. "I try to encourage everyone in the household to take an interest in the world around us." Shoji just put his slippers on, saying nothing. That was the Matriarch talking. At least that was one thing she and his mother could agree on. He took off his jacket and hung it in the wide closet. Underneath he had just a tight red T-shirt that emphasized the well developed muscles on his slim form. "I have tea for us upstairs," Kaori said. Shoji followed her up the stairway, down the hall and into her private suite. It was the biggest in the house, almost an apartment in its own right with a separate bedroom, bath and sitting room with attached kitchenette. She led him to the part of the sitting room that was covered with bamboo mats. On it was a low table with a tea set. The glass doors beyond it led out onto a patio and afforded a spectacular view of the Tokyo skyline spread out below them. Seen through the hazy, humid air the city looked like a distant mirage. Shoji sat on a cushion by the table, opposite his mother. She busied herself serving the tea. The tea set was the only item on the simple wide black wooden table. Such a contrast to his own apartment, Shoji thought, where he barely had enough space left on the floor to lay down his futon each night. He didn't have the sort of space to play with his mother had, not where he was. Kaori placed his tea in front of him. "Thanks." He took a sip. Perfect, as always. "It must be a relief, being in an air conditioned house for a while," Kaori commented. "Oh, it hasn't been too bad this summer," Shoji said. "My apartment is at ground level, so it doesn't get as hot as the ones upstairs. Besides, with my job I'm usually not home until really late when it's cooled down a bit." "That's good." Kaori sipped her tea. "I understand you took Yui to your apartment again last week." *Here it comes.* "Yeah, we stopped by at my place before I brought her home from that theme park." "She seems to like your apartment." Shoji chuckled. "My whole place is smaller than her bedroom here. She just thinks it's really cool that I'm living in Tokyo, never mind what the place looks like." "Has she told you that she'd like to move in with you?" "Yes." They looked at each other in silence for a moment. "And what do you think of that?" "Same as you, Mom. I think it would be a bad idea right now. She's hardly met anybody outside the family. I don't think she could deal with living among outsiders yet." Kaori sighed. "Shoji, the way things are going, I don't think she'll ever be ready to live among outsiders." "That bad, huh?" Kaori nodded. She didn't need to ask what Shoji was referring to. "She's made no progress. Sign language, lip reading, nothing. She just doesn't care. Telepathy is her crutch and she won't let go of it." Shoji shrugged. "I don't know, is that so bad? There are others in the family that don't bother with anything else. Look at uncle Ryouchi, he talks to everyone but I don't think a word has passed his lips in twenty years." "Uncle Ryouchi is over sixty, and he's content to putter around on one or another of the family's farms in Hokkaido, talking to whatever family happens to drop by. I would hate to think that's all Yui has to look forward to." "I'm not suggesting that, mom. Our family isn't all in Hokkaido anymore," Shoji said, waving his arm to indicate the house. "The Matriarch has seen to that. So have you. It's different for us now, we're all over the place. If Yui can only talk to other Ancients, that won't put her in a prison like it used to." "I know. But to never even be able to speak with outsiders... it goes against everything the Matriarch has been trying to do for us. We can't live in splendid isolation anymore." "You're preaching to the choir, mom," Shoji said, indicating with a smile that he wasn't really complaining. His expression quickly sobered. "But you know, Yui is a special case. She wouldn't be able to talk to most outsiders anyway, at least not easily. Deaf mutes don't have an easy time of it, no matter how many tricks they learn. They're even more of outsiders than we've been." Kaori nodded, conceding the point. She looked very sad and troubled. "I have no illusions about her fitting easily into the outsiders' world, I know it won't happen. But I've wanted so much to at least give her a way to talk to others, not just Ancients. Without that, I don't think her attitude will ever change." She didn't need to tell Shoji what she was referring to. "Mom, she'll outgrow that. It's not like she hates outsiders or anything, she just thinks they're-" "Animals." Shoji looked away. "Well, yeah. But you know, it wasn't that long ago that we all thought that. A lot of the family still do, I don't need to tell you that." Kaori sighed. Shoji could guess what she was thinking. It had been an uphill struggle for her and all those who had led the Ancients' to their more active engagement of the modern age. This was just another reminder. "I think a lot of it comes from her mother, I wish she had taught Yui differently." "Mom, you know her mother doesn't give a shit." Kaori reproved him with a stern look. But she could hardly argue the point. Yui's mother had never been able to deal with her daughter's condition, had essentially rejected the girl. And of course Yui's father had been in no position to help. When he finally left in despair, it hadn't taken much for Kaori to have Yui moved here. Kaori and the other adults in her household were the closest thing Yui had to parents now. "I'm not the only one worried about Yui's future," Kaori said. "The Matriarch has been watching her development." That was not good. Shoji poured himself more tea, something to occupy him and hide his surprise as he absorbed this news. He decided on a delicate probe. "You know, Yui hasn't been to Hokkaido in a while. Maybe I should take her again, see some of the old places." Kaori nodded. "The Matriarch has expressed interest in seeing Yui at the house." She could hardly have given Shoji a more obvious hint. The Matriarch had already seen that Yui could become one of the most powerful. If she wasn't satisfied with the way Yui was being raised here, she might take the girl directly under her wing. Permanently. Time to end this mental jujitsu with a direct approach. Shoji sipped at his tea and put it back on the table. "You know, you don't have to worry about Yui becoming a black sheep or going rogue or anything." Kaori blinked. "I don't understand." Shoji smiled. "When she comes of age, I'm going to ask her to marry me, then we're going to settle into some nicer place in the city and have lots of little Ancients running around in no time at all. Tell the Matriarch that, I think it will make her happy." Kaori's surprised expression slowly faded, to be replaced by a warm smile. "Shoji ... you know that would make us all very happy." "Thought it might." Shoji decided to change the subject, treat this as a done deal. He gestured to a small postcard on the tea tray that he had been ignoring up until now. "Say, I think I recognize that handwriting." "It's from your father," Kaori said, picking up the postcard and handing it to Shoji. Shoji took it and read through it quickly. It was from Australia, where his father was vacationing. Shoji hadn't seen his father for several years, not since the divorce. He still sent New Years cards, and also postcards from any interesting place he visited. Like other women among the Ancients, Kaori had married an outsider, bringing new blood into the family. Like many such marriages, it had ended in divorce fairly soon after a child had been born. A mother of Ancient blood shared a gift and a bond with her children that an outsider father could never be a part of. The friction and resentment this caused was often too much to deal with. At least Kaori's divorce had been fairly amicable, both parties agreeing that it was the best thing for all of them. Of course, Shoji's father was sworn to secrecy. That's why he was still alive with his mind intact. Shoji flipped the postcard over. "Nice picture. You know, I've always wanted to go ... uh, Mom, are you okay?" Kaori's brow was knitted and her eyes vacant. There was growing alarm in her expression. She brought the fingers of one hand up to her temple. "I'm not sure, I ... sense a disturbance." Shoji watched his mother in silence for a moment. He was not as sensitive as her, maybe he was just imagining it ... no. He could feel it now, the psychic equivalent of stormclouds gathering. In a flash he remembered what this felt like. Last year, when that great black crystal appeared in the middle of Tokyo, along with a storm that had practically shut down the city for a day. All the Ancients had felt it then, like the Earth itself was stabbed, screaming in pain. Was it his imagination that it was getting darker? He glanced out the window. His blood turned to ice water. "Holy shit," he breathed involuntarily. Kaori turned toward the window and cried out loud. They both got to their feet and took a couple of steps closer to the glass doors. Stormclouds were building with hellish speed on the horizon. They were black like smoke, not white like thunderheads seen at a distance were supposed to be. It was like the whole city had been set on fire. But this was not smoke either. Shoji could see flashes of red, like alien lightning, arcing through the clouds and raining down on the city. Shoji didn't need to concentrate to feel its force anymore. Waves of pure malevolence washed over him like a distant scream. This was no storm, it was some monstrous abomination. "The children," Kaori said with a tremor in her voice. "I have to get them inside." She turned and ran out of the room as quickly as her kimono would allow. Shoji stood where he was, staring out at the hellish scene, struck dumb by the power he felt. Bring the children inside? What good would that do? Over the barely audible sound of the distant thunder, he heard a soft pop of air. Somebody teleporting. **Senpai!** Shoji turned around just on time to have Yui run into him, wrapping her arms around him and pressing the side of her face against his chest. **Senpai, I saw it from my window, I can feel it! What is it?** **I don't know, Yui-chan,** Shoji said, gently putting his hands around her back. He turned his head around to look back out the window. Whatever it was, it didn't seem to be growing any more or coming any closer. That was small comfort. **I'm scared.** Yui's breathing was ragged, she was crying. **It'll be okay, Yui-chan.** He stroked her hair. He was doing his best to mask his own fear, but he could feel Yui's, she was nearly hysterical. He had managed to calm her down a bit when he heard his mother's voice. It was from far away, it had the echoing quality of an open sending to everybody in range. **Everybody, this is Kaori. I have word from the Matriarch. She knows about what is happening. The Seed Crystal is reacting to the storm. She has told us to stay where we are and wait for the storm to pass. It is preventing us from contacting the Ancients in Tokyo, but when it passes they will surely contact us. Please don't worry, everything will be fine.** Shoji's mind was racing. The Seed Crystal. Of course, that was the best place to be. As far as possible from whatever in hell was going on here. He gently pulled himself from Yui's embrace, smiled down at her as he wiped her tears away. **There, you see? Grandma Himiko will take care of us, everything will be okay.** **Is she coming here?** Yui asked hopefully. The Matriarch was almost a legendary figure to the younger Ancients, Yui had only seen her a couple of times. **No, I don't think so. The Seed Crystal tells her things, so she'll want to stay with it to watch what's happening.** **I wish I was there.** That's what Shoji had been hoping to hear. **Would you like to go there, Yui?** Her eyes went wide, both hopeful and desperate. **Could we?** Shoji cradled her face in his hands. **I don't know Yui, do you feel up to it?** She nodded. Shoji could feel her eagerness, but also her confidence. She was desperate to seek out the protection she thought the Matriarch and the Crystal could afford. But not desperate enough to try something she wasn't sure she could do. Shoji thought he should let his mother know where they were going, but she might object. Yui might not go if Kaori told her not to. He couldn't risk that. **Okay Yui, I'll leave it to you.** He stepped back and took her hands in his. She took a deep breath and let it out. She relaxed visibly as she prepared herself. Shoji had seen her do this several times before, but still marvelled that somebody her age could- Before he was expecting it, they were standing in front of the Matriarch's house. It took just a moment for the vertigo to pass. Yui was powerful and skilled, but still lacked the experience that would allow her to teleport them such a distance with no ill effects. She shook her head to clear it. She was shaking slightly, and breathing a little harder than she was before. Shoji stepped toward her and allowed her to rest against him. It was cloudy in Hokkaido now. He could see bits of a grey sky in between the great, ancient gnarled trees that reached up and nearly succeeded in blocking it out. The big house was almost as tall as the trees that pressed around it, and looked about as ancient. It probably was as old as some of the trees, and stood on ground that had been occupied by far more ancient places. The wood, tiles and plaster were all dark, almost black. Even on a sunny day this could never be a cheery looking place. Today it looked positively grim. Shoji had never liked the place. But right now he felt just as Yui no doubt did: somehow it always seemed safe here, in the presence of the oldest and greatest of the family's places of power. He tried to ignore the fact that he could still feel whispers of the storm in Tokyo, all the way out here. He could see that Yui had pretty much shaken off the effects of the teleport. **Let's go inside,** he said. **Okay.** She had teleported them onto one of the great flat stones that formed the walkways that weaved through the ornamental garden that surrounded the house on all three sides. Many of the other stones, the largest ones, also acted as focus points, for other Ancients who could teleport. They walked along the path, past the fish pools, flower beds and stone gardens. As always, there was a guard at the front door. That always struck Shoji as being just a bit paranoid. The land for many kilometres around them had things that would protect them from any intruders, had protected them for millennia. The guard was a stocky middle aged man that Shoji recognized as a distant relative, one of the many who lived here. He wore a simple, traditional workman's short kimono and sandles. He stood stock still, arms crossed, regarding them sternly as they approached. Shoji marvelled how everyone in Himiko's household looked like they had dropped out of a Samurai drama, all he needed to do was shave the top of his head to make the picture complete. **Shoji-san, Yui-san. You bring news from Kaori's house?** **Nothing new,** Shoji replied. **Yui was frightened, she wanted to be here.** The man's frown deepened. **That was against the Matriarch's orders. The storm is interfering with long distance telepathy, it may interfere with teleporting as well. Especially for somebody so inexperienced.** **I got here okay,** Yui said. She was clinging tightly to Shoji's arm. She looked like she was barely resisting the urge to hide behind him. The man regarded her for a moment. **Since you are here, you had better go inside. Most everybody is in the Crystal room.** He went to slide open the door for them. Shoji led Yui inside. As they had been told, the house was deserted. They went to the very back of the house, where they stepped out onto a much smaller garden. It was surrounded on three sides by the great house. On the fourth side rose the rocky cliff that the house was built against. Between that and the two great gnarled oaks in the garden, they could barely see the sky from here. Even at midday the garden was dark and gloomy. Shoji wondered how anybody could stand living here. They walked onto a large flat stone in the middle of the garden. **Will you be okay, Yui?** he asked. **Sure, this one's easy.** Almost before she finished speaking, they were in a cave on the opposite side of the mountain the house sat against. The stone they stood on was a very powerful focus point, attuned especially to the rock behind the house. It made teleporting virtually effortless even for the least experienced of them. Which was good, since it was the only way in and out of the caves. As always, the caves were cold and damp. Shoji suddenly wished he had his jacket again. Wind whistled around the rocks, and sunlight filtered in through the various fissures far overhead. Glowing white crystals mounted on the rough rock walls provided the only other illumination. There was a sharp smell of rotting moss. There was only so much Himiko's people could do to make the place more livable. Shoji led Yui across the stone cave floor, cut flat by ancient stonecutters and worn smooth by centuries of use. Even if he hadn't known the route by heart, Shoji could not have mistaken where he was headed. He could feel the presence of many Ancients, the side effects of their telepathic conversations tickling his mind. And the Matriarch hadn't been kidding about the Seed Crystal reacting to the storm, he felt as if he could practically see it through the stone walls, its presence was so powerful. Much more than normal. They rounded a corner in the narrow tunnel and emerged into the Seed Crystal cave. For all this prewarning, Shoji was still astonished by what he saw. The cave was crowded. It looked like the whole household was here, and many others besides. Normally the huge irregular cave was very dim, having no opening to the sky above and being lit only by a few glowing crystals at its circumference. But now he was seeing it as he never had before. The rough ceiling was dotted by the stumps of formerly invisible stalactites whose water source had dried up ages ago. The stone, which had never looked anything other than dark grey, was alive with colour, striped by veins of various ores and dotted with patches of sparkling crystal. It was all basking in the glow of the Seed Crystal. The crystal Shoji remembered was a milky white translucent spire standing almost as tall as him, flanked on all sides by several smaller spires, all thrust up through the cave floor like some crude sword blades. When Shoji had seen it, he could never decide whether it was glowing of its own accord or just reflecting the dim light of the other crystals. Now it shone so brightly, it was almost uncomfortable to look directly at it. The dozens of people in the cave were all keeping a respectful distance from the artifact. The ones who lived here, the ones who saw the crystal nearly every day, all looked dazed. They just stared unbelievingly at the crystal that had stood unchanging all their lives, had stood unchanging since before recorded history. Well, almost unchanging. Shoji had heard the stories. Two years ago, when the sun had been covered with sunspots for a day and the weather seemed to go mad. Then again when the great black crystal had appeared in Tokyo and paralyzed the city for a day. Then when the Infinity Academy had been destroyed. Then the day when Tokyo had been buried in spiderwebs. Each time, the Seed Crystal had glowed brightly, radiating the same telepathic image. Then, just as abruptly, it had gone back to normal. Shoji had spoken to some of the sensitives who had been in the Tokyo area each of those times. None of them liked to talk about it. Each time, they had felt a dread like nothing they had ever experienced, as if the Earth had teetered on the brink of the abyss and been snatched back. That was exactly what he had felt like at Kaori's house, watching those abominable clouds spreading over the land like a cancer. **What are you two doing here?** There was no mistaking the voice. The Matriarch stepped out of the crowd and stood before them, hands on her hips. It was not hard for her to be lost in the crowd, she was no taller than Yui. Shoji could well believe that she was nearly a century old, the creases that etched a permanent frown on her face seemed to make her into a distant cousin of the gnarled oaks that surrounded her house. Her white hair was gathered back into a small bun at the base of her neck. Her stature was stooped, her movements slow and painful. She was also quite thin, but somehow it was impossible to see her as being at all frail. Her dark, deep set eyes burned with intensity, the intensity that in her youth had given her the power to change the Ancients forever. She wore a half kimono and work pants gathered at the ankles, as if she had been working in the garden when the crisis struck. **Grandma Himiko!** Yui called, breaking away from Shoji and running to the Matriarch. She collapsed to her knees in front of the old woman. It was hard to tell whether she just tripped on the uneven rock floor, or whether she was showing deference. **Grandma Himiko, what's happening?** **You haven't answered my question.** Yui seemed to shrivel under the Matriarch's gaze. She lowered her gaze to the floor. **I was scared, I wanted to come here. I'm sorry.** Himiko sniffed. **No matter. Listen young one, even you are old enough to remember the last time the Seed Crystal warned us of approaching evil. We weathered that storm, we'll weather this one.** **But this one's worse,** Yui whimpered. **Get up on your feet, girl!** Yui started at the vehemence behind the Matriarch's command. Shoji flinched, could see the people around them suddenly becoming more still. Himiko was making no attempt to keep the exchange private. Quite the contrary, it was the telepathic equivalent of shouting out loud. Shaking slightly, Yui got to her feet. She managed to meet the Matriarch's gaze. **Have you learned nothing of what your elders have taught you? Did you think we were lying? The First Ancestor was not a legend, she was as real as you and I are real. The legacy she left us is the proof, the legacy of the power in our bloodline, and the power in the Crystal. Her legacy has protected our family since before recorded history, has protected our family through calamities that we in this age cannot even imagine. It gave us the power to keep her legacy alive long after the oldest empires of the outsiders had crumbled to dust.** The Matriarch drew herself up to her full height, such as it was. **So I won't have a bearer of the bloodline cowering before a flashy display of power.** Yui nodded. **Yes, Matriarch.** Shoji could still see a slight quiver in her arms, but she was doing a good job of hiding it. She looked just as stoic as the guard at the door who had let them in. He felt a twinge of pride. **Now do what you should have done in the first place, sit still and wait. For now, we weather the storm as the mountain does. The mountain does not move.** She turned around and walked back toward the Seed Crystal. The crowd parted for her. They were very quite, Shoji could feel very little residual telepathy. After a moment, he walked up to Yui and put his arm around her. **You okay?** **Yeah.** **The old bird can be pretty scary, huh?** **Yeah.** She leaned against him, and they just stood there for a while. Every now and then one of Himiko's guards would enter the cave. Shoji called them her guards, since she seemed to run her household like a Samurai running a field command tent. The guards would come to Himiko and give her a private report. Sometimes, she would pass some of the news on to the others. Over the next couple of hours, a picture emerged of what was happening. The storm was still raging over Tokyo strong as ever. Some of the Ancients who had been trapped there had managed to get out and make their way to Kaori's house. They had seen people in the city being struck down by the unnatural lightning, had felt their souls being ripped out of them, had even claimed seeing their disembodied spirits floating up into the roiling clouds. Some had seen pictures on a television of a woman with madness in her eyes, a woman calling herself Galaxia, claiming the Earth as her own. Himiko said that none had reported any of the Ancients coming to harm. Shoji wondered what she might be hiding. He and Yui went back to the house to get something to eat and drink, as did some of the others. But they all found themselves quickly returning to the Seed Crystal room. However frightening a transformation it had undergone, it was still their point of stability, their anchor. Shoji always wondered how many of his family's legends he could really believe. But whether or not the bloodline and the crystal were as old as they said, their power was a fact that could not be denied. Here in this place, among his people, he could make himself believe that they would live through this madness. Then Himiko told them that the storm had passed. Shoji could feel his relief echoed in the minds of the Ancients around him. But it was short-lived. The tension in the room did not go down at all. Nobody spoke, but nobody had to. They knew what was wrong. The Seed Crystal was still glowing. The echoes of the chaos that had been unleashed over Tokyo had not abated, they were still there like a background of dark menace settling down into the land. **Senpai ...** Yui was at his side, staring into the light of the Seed Crystal. **I can still see it.** **Yes Yui, I can still see it too.** It was clearer than ever, the telepathic image that the Crystal had been radiating since they got here, the same image he had heard others describe from the last time the crystal glowed like this. Shoji locked his eyes on the featureless white light of the Crystal, allowed his inner eye to focus on the image it was sending him. It rose up into a dark sky, shimmering and beautiful like it was cut out of a single immense piece of glass. A great crystal palace, its spires like daggers reaching for the clouds. ***** Agent Takada walked into the busy terminal building of Narita airport. He had been here many times before, but had never been to the particular place he was looking for now. He had some idea where it was. An airport directory on the wall confirmed he was headed in the right direction. Walking into a less crowded section of the terminal, he found what he was looking for. The airport police station. He walked in and approached the front desk. The young police woman there looked up as he approached. "Good afternoon, may I help you?" Her warm smile broadened as she got a better look at him. "Agent Hitoshi Takada, Special Investigations." He displayed his ID card. "I believe I am expected." "Yes sir!" she said brightly, standing up. "We were told to escort you directly to the aircraft as soon as you arrived. I'll take you there myself." She turned around. "Akiko, can you take over here for a while?" "Will do," a voice came from a door leading into the back room. The officer who had spoken came through the door, impossibly looking even younger than the first. You know you're getting older when all the police officers start looking like kids, Takada mused. Akiko got a look at him and she froze in place. She smiled shyly and bowed. "Good afternoon." "Afternoon," Takada replied, tipping his hat. Akiko went to sit down at the front desk, giving her counterpart a dark look that said she should have been the one to escort him to the hangar. "Right this way, sir," his escort said as she opened the little gate that let him come behind the front desk. She led him through the back room and into the section of the terminal that was closed to passengers. The inner sanctum, as it were. Takada cleared his throat. "I didn't quite catch your name, officer ... " "You can just call me Yuki," the young woman said cheerfully. She was keeping up a brisk pace, which the much taller Takada was able to maintain with a more leisurely stride. "I see. Yuki-san, I just wanted to confirm something. Nobody has been allowed access to the aircraft since after the police investigators and the people from Boeing were done with it, is that correct?" "Yes sir, we were given very specific instructions. The hanger is strictly off-limits." "I see. Thank you." She led him down a staircase to a utility tunnel that had all sorts of pipes and wires trailing down its length along the walls and ceiling, lit at intervals by bare light bulbs. She drove him down the corridor on an electric cart. She parked the cart and they went up another set of stairs that led out onto the runway near the hangar. Their ears were assaulted by the engines of the airliners taxiing nearby. They walked over to the tiny doorway that was lost in the immensity of the hangar wall. Two officers stood guard there. The officers removed their hearing protection headsets and exchanged some shouting with Yuki over the sound of the airplanes. Their identities were confirmed and they were admitted into the hanger. The relative quiet of the hangar was a relief. Takada looked up at the airplane that filled the immense space. The Japan Airlines 747 shone under the bright floodlights, there was no visible sign of the damage. That was as he had been told. The incidents in question had happened inside the aircraft. Yuki was standing at parade rest, smiling up at him. "If there's anything I can do to help, please let me know." "I should be less than half an hour, if you could wait for me here I would be very grateful." Her face fell. "Uh..." "I'll need you to escort me back through this maze of a place, Yuki- san," Takada said, and smiled. She blushed slightly. "Yes sir. Uh ... perhaps I could take your coat and hat." "No, thank you. If you'll excuse me." He tipped his hat and turned to walk over to the airplane. A universal step had been wheeled up to the one of the open doorways. He climbed the stairs and entered the lower deck. He looked up and down the rows of seats. Everything looked right and proper. He walked down the aisle to the stairway that led to the upper deck. Looking up the stairway, he saw the first signs of the "trouble" that had plagued this aircraft's most recent flight. There were dents and cracks in the walls of the stairway. Like something big and heavy and hard had tumbled down the stairs. He took a closer look at the damage as he ascended the stairs. This could easily have just been one of the service trollies falling down. Probably nothing of interest here. The upper passenger deck was another matter altogether. The loose debris had been cleared away and taken elsewhere. But the place was still a mess. The walls, ceiling, floor and many of the seats were scorched, cracked and dented in many places. In one spot the plastic that formed the inner walls had been blasted away completely, exposing the outer skin of the aircraft. From the looks of things, it was remarkable the plane had not lost pressure. Even more remarkable that there had been no casualties. Those pop stars and their guests had emerged unscathed. But the details of the physical damage was not quite what Takada was here to look at, it merely hinted at what he might find. He opened up the topcoat he still wore over his suit, and drew out the shorter of the two blades that hung under his coat. It was the shape of a wakizashi, a slightly curved short sword about fifty centimetres in length. The sheath, guard and grip were all of plain jet black. Takada chose a spot where he could see all the damaged areas of the room, and knelt down on the floor. He sat still for a few moments, collecting his thoughts. Then he brought the blade out in front of him and with his thumb pushed the guard away from the sheath, exposing some of the ancient blade within. With his other hand he gripped the sword and unsheathed it. A delicate rainbow pattern played up and down the blade, it almost seemed to glow. When Takada laid the sheath down next to him and began his incantation, the blade quite unmistakably began to glow. As he continued his chant, Takada brought up his other hand and pressed the tip of the short sword against it. He lifted his hand above the sword blade, letting blood slowly drip from his hand down onto the blade and along the blood runnel that ran down its length. The blade seemed to absorb the blood and glow even brighter. After a while Takada closed his hand into a fist, staunching the trickle of blood. He held the blade out in front of him, and observed what was illuminated in its glow. He touched a button on the recorder in his breast pocket and began reciting. "I am at the back of the upper passenger deck looking forward towards the flight deck. The areas which have received physical damage are showing unmistakable residue of magical or psionic weapons discharge. I am reading at least four distinct signatures, none of which are familiar to me. There is also a background residue throughout the room. Probable that one or more paranormal beings was disrupted or terminated in the room by said weapons discharge. Also definite spatial distortion echo in one spot on the floor. Speculate one entity teleported in and/or out of the room. Unknown teleport signature type so time delay difficult to judge, speculate around the time of the incident. Shapes of the signatures strongly indicates them to be collateral damage from weapons directed at said paranormal entity, no direct hits on the room itself. That being the case, probable high power weapons. Spells of Magi class or higher, or psionics of Ancients class or higher. Placement follows physical damage very closely, confirming this to be a melee involving several human size entities. No other signatures detected, no residual lifeforce, no psychoplasm, no spells on room or any items within." Takada returned his gaze to the blade, and its glow faded away. He took a deep breath and expelled it slowly. "No reason to believe the aircraft poses any further danger, recommend it be released for repair and return to service. No reason to make any change to the cover story. End recording." He stopped his recorder, sheathed his blade and stood up. He put the blade back in its place and buttoned his topcoat. Takada had finished his task, but he decided to have another quick look around before going back. He walked across the room and through the door to the cockpit. The crew had been incapacitated during the incident, just like everybody else. Luckily, the aircraft had been on autopilot and they had all recovered quickly. The damage had not threatened the operation of the aircraft, but after they had recovered the crew had quite properly cut the flight short and returned to Narita. They had the same story as the four hundred or so Three Lights fans in the airplane. We fell asleep, and when we woke up there was a mess in the upper passenger deck. That's all. It was being written off as a freak lightning strike. Takada continued to have a look around. In the washroom he took the opportunity to glance in the mirror and straighten his tie. He was a darkly handsome man with a long face, high cheekbones and dark, penetrating eyes. His black hair was swept back and caught in a short ponytail. His looks and lean build were well suited to the white shirt and dark suit which was the required dress for the Hidden branch of the Order. He was in his late thirties, but looked somewhat younger. He was well used to being fawned over by women half his age. He was about to leave the aircraft when his cellular phone gently chimed. He stopped, pulled out the phone and unfolded it. "Takada here." "This is the Tokyo office," came a familiar female voice. "Hi Noriko. What's up?" "We're getting reports of a major disturbance at Tokyo Stadium." "The Three Lights concert?" Takada asked, already knowing the answer. "Right. Metro police are treating it as definite Weird Shit. The stadium's already being evacuated, they're getting ready to do the same to the surrounding blocks." "Who's the closest field agent?" "Sorry, that would be you." Takada groaned. "You know I'm still at Narita?" "Yes. We didn't have anyone tailing the Three Lights, didn't know whether we should." "As it happens I was about to call and recommend we do just that." "You found something there?" "Yeah. Listen, I'll call back when I'm on the road." "Well, don't run any red lights. If it's like the last few, it's probably already over and done." "Tell me about it. Talk to you in a bit." He put away the phone and walked briskly for the exit. Yuki was standing right where he had left her. She frowned as she noted his quick stride. "Yuki-san, something's come up. I need you to get me to the reserved parking lot ASAP." "Yes, of course," she stammered. "Uh ... please follow me." She led him back out onto the great expanse of concrete around the hangars, and they headed for a group of airport vehicles. She trotted along beside him to keep up with his brisk walk. They requisitioned one of the vehicles, and in just a couple of minutes they were at the parking lot. They exchanged quick but polite goodbyes and Takada ran for his car. He started up the big black Mercedes sedan and headed for the exit. Once he was on the freeway leading back to Tokyo, he settled in behind a truck that was doing a good deal more than the speed limit. He pulled out the car phone and punched an auto dial button. "Tokyo office," Noriko answered. "Takada here." "Hi. I've got something new. Metro police report hearing a couple of *big* explosions inside the stadium. They're expanding the area of evacuation." "Nothing visual?" "No, as usual they're staying clear." One could hardly blame them. "Find out where they're setting up their command station, I may have to report in there." "Will do. There's one more thing. We're getting pretty high readings on all our astral detectors in the Tokyo area." "*All* of them?" "Yeah. It's really fluctuating, but the strongest readings are near the stadium. And the closest ward is nearly a kilometre from the stadium." *Shit.* "Noriko, contact all the field agents and get them all moving back to the Tokyo office ASAP. All except one, whoever is near a good sanctuary on another island, tell them to go there and stay put. Just pick one, your discretion." There was a slight pause. "You think it could hit the fan again?" "Yeah." "Should I call the shrine and the New York office?" "Definitely. When you're done, get our background material on the Three Lights and call me back, I haven't even bloody read it yet." "I don't think there's much, but I'll call you back." "Later." Takada replaced the car phone. He hit a button on the centre console. A siren began sounding, and a flashing light rose out of the dashboard. Takada gunned the engine, pulled out from behind the truck and started weaving through traffic. Technically, he wasn't supposed to be doing this. But some rather complex and delicate relationships between the Order and the various police forces went a long way towards making his job easier. It wasn't long after the sky turned black that the office called. "Noriko, are you seeing this?" "Yes, it's all over Tokyo. Takada-san, I'm not reading you very clearly." "Likewise. We may lose this link soon, so keep it brief." "Okay. The field agents are on their way, and Eiheiji and New York are aware of the situation. Oh, and all our detectors are off the scale now, no surprise there. I just pulled our background on the Three Lights. To put it simply, there isn't any. It's like they dropped onto the planet just on time to audition as idol singers." "Great. It's Ingolfsson all over again." "Looks like we got caught with our britches down. Ah ... sorry sir." "Not at all." As acting head of the new Tokyo office, it was his responsibility to keep on top of things like this. Well, it looked like he was going to be getting right on top of it very quickly indeed. "Listen, this damned lightning or whatever is getting worse. If this is still going on when other field agents get into the area, tell them to hold back. I don't want all of us getting caught in this. On no account is anybody to come after me until this clears. I'll call as soon as I can." "Understood. Good luck sir." "Thanks." Traffic on the freeway was quickly getting backed up, so Takada exited well before the stadium. Things weren't much better on the city streets. Many people had abandoned their vehicles, running for the perceived shelter of nearby buildings. The streets were slowly becoming deserted. Takada noted that the sickly blood-red lightning that arced overhead was striking the ground more and more frequently. One bolt hit a nearby building, leaving no visible damage. He thought he could glimpse a spark or something rising into the air from the spot it hit, but he couldn't be sure. He was still over two klicks from the stadium when it became clear he could take the car no further, the roads were all blocked by abandoned vehicles. The streets were deserted already. He got out of the car and continued on foot. When lightning struck a building just twenty meters ahead of him, he decided it was time to use the Masamune. He reached into his now open topcoat and carefully drew the long katana out of its black scabbard. He held the sword out before him with both hands as he continued on his way. The clarity of vision the blade afforded him never ceased to amaze him, even now. He could feel the storm around him like a physical presence, could feel each strike of the hellish lightning. It was a disturbing feeling, each bolt seemed to be accompanied by the sound of a soul screaming in pain. He suddenly spun about and shouted as he swung the blade down. Blue- white light ignited along the length of the blade. It connected with the bolt of lightning that had been bearing down on Takada's back, deflecting it to a nearby building. Takada staggered back, shaking, breathing in gasps. His whole body was tingling. He had never felt power like that before, had just barely been able to deflect it. He had to deflect two more bolts of the soul-eating lightning before he reached the refuge of the stadium. The bulk of the huge building over him may very well be an illusory refuge, he had seen and felt the lightning strike down people right through walls. Be that as it may, he made his way to an entrance that opened out onto the main stage. It looked something like the upper deck of that 747, only fifty times worse. The Masamune did not afford him anywhere near the enhanced vision of his smaller blade, but even with it the residue around the blackened craters that dotted the stadium was as clear as day. A paranormal of immense power had been terminated here, he was sure. But whatever had happened here, he had missed it. As usual. He started as the horizon to his left suddenly lit up. Over the rim of the stadium he could just see the clouds open up as an immense beam of white light shot down to the ground. He started counting, one thousand and one, one thousand and two, one thousand and- the shock wave hit him like a hammer, nearly throwing him to the ground. His ears ringing, he leaned against a wall, recovering from the blast. After a minute he went running through the empty corridors under the stadium and exited in the direction of the blast. No, it wasn't his imagination, the lightning was more intense around the spot that blast had hit. Whatever was going on, that's where the action was. He just had to walk about a kilometre. And then presumably look for a big crater. Half a kilometre and five deflected lightning bolts later, Takada was really starting to think this was not such a good idea. He had given up trying to call the office after the first two tries. The office had the strongest wards they could put up, at least Noriko would probably be okay. Assuming this madness ever ended. If it didn't end soon, his soul would be going to whatever place all the other ones had gone. He was staggering along the road, his nerves screaming from the immense energy that was being thrown at him. The lightning suddenly stopped. The clouds started evaporating like mist. In a matter of seconds he was standing under a clear blue sky. The setting sun was just peeking over a nearby building. The constant thunder was gone, echoed only by the ringing in his ears. Takada collapsed to his knees, let his sword slowly sink down to the ground. He just sat there for a couple of minutes, trying to convince himself that it was really over. When he felt more or less mobile again, Takada got back to his feet, sheathed his sword and buttoned up his coat. He continued in the same direction he had been walking. He started to see visible damage to the buildings around him. It was getting worse the further he went. By the time he got to more or less where he thought the epicentre was, it looked like a war zone. Some of the buildings had collapsed altogether. He couldn't see any bodies. Thankfully, it looked like this had been part of the evacuation zone. Old instincts had long since kicked in, prompting him to move near the walls, stay low and check corners before rounding them. So when he peered around the corner of a partially collapsed building and glimpsed a group of people, he dropped back behind the building in an instant. Checking all around him, he went around the other side of the building, where it looked like he would be able to approach the group from the relative shelter of a narrow alley. Entering the alley, he crept behind a big dumpster and peered around it. The group of people was still standing where he had seen them, in the middle of the rubble-strewn street just about thirty meters away. No, he hadn't been seeing things. It was the Sailor Senshi. He counted eight girls in the flamboyant uniforms for which these urban legends had become famous, the white outfits with the colourful skirts that were so reminiscent of the sailor fuku that school girls wore. There were three others in what he could only describe as leather fetish versions of the Senshi uniforms. And one other red haired woman in a set of robes that would not have been out of place in the court of an ancient Chinese emperor. They were all congregating around a man dressed in black formal wear. In between them Takada could just glimpse a girl who the man was holding. It looked like he had wrapped his cape around her, all he could see was her bare feet and ankles and two impossibly long golden pigtails cascading down her back. Takada smiled. *Sailor Moon, I presume.* He managed to get a few shots with his digital camera before the man gathered Sailor Moon in his arms, and led the others away. They moved at an inhumanly fast pace. Even on his best day, Takada would have no hope of following them. He put away his camera, walked over to an appropriately sized piece of rubble and sat down. He pulled out his cellular and called the office. "Tokyo office," Noriko said in the same deadpan she always answered the phone with. "Takada here." "Sir! Are you okay?" "More or less. And you?" "Yes, we're fine. Communications are back up and all our detectors are back online. They're reading zero now." "Yeah, looks like it's over." "The New York office is going nuts, they're requesting a report ASAP. I've got them on the line now, did you want me to transfer you over?" *Oh yes, they're going to just love this one.* "Sure, go ahead." End Chapter 1 Subject: [FANFIC: Sailor Moon: Secrets chapter 2] Date: Tue, 30 Dec 1997 19:01:02 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca To: Chris Davies , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Newsgroups: rec.arts.anime.creative,alt.fan.sailor-moon [file attached] -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- Secrets Chapter 2 - Life is a Beach They made an odd pair, the two women who emerged from the dressing room next to the tennis courts. The first was very tall and lean, with dusky skin and an ample figure. She had a lovely, ageless face with striking red eyes and full lips. Her hair, black with hints of green, cascaded down her back well below her waist. She wore a colourful sarong that nearly went to her elaborate sandals, an embroidered leather vest and a straw hat with a very wide brim and the feathers of all sorts of exotic birds arranged on top of it. She had an oversized tote bag slung over her shoulder. The other was a head shorter than her, a young asian woman with unusually pale skin and short blue-tinted black hair. She had a very cute round face with dark blue eyes. Her slim, athletic figure was emphasized very nicely by the simple light blue summer dress she wore. Her small sun hat, sandles and the sports bag slung on her shoulder were equally simple and functional. "What do you say we check up on our friends?" Setsuna said. Ami smiled up at her taller friend. "Do you think they'll still be at it?" "Yes, I would bet on it." "Okay, let's go." They made their way down the wooden boardwalk that went down the length of the beach, separating it from the food stands, shops and other facilities of the resort. It was a lovely day. The sky was dotted with little cumulus clouds, and a breeze blowing in from the ocean kept the July afternoon from being sweltering. Ami was still sweating a bit, perhaps she was still recovering from their earlier exertion. She really loved this place, but there was no getting away from the fact that tropical climates didn't quite agree with her, she tired easily in the heat. Setsuna, by contrast, seemed right at home here. "I can't believe you only started playing tennis last year," Setsuna said. "You're already quite good." "Setsuna, you beat me in every set," Ami reminded her. "Well, you didn't give me an easy time of it. That was the most challenging game I've played in a long time." "How long have you been playing?" "About two hundred years." Ami rolled her eyes. "Okay, I guess I walked right into that one." They both laughed, then continued on in comfortable silence for a while. They took a very leisurely pace, enjoying the air and the scenery. The beach area was fairly busy, with couples and families and groups of friends wandering around the shops, relaxing on the beach or playing in the water. They passed the occasional palm tree, its enormous leaves bobbing in the breeze far overhead. Far out to sea, Ami could see a cruise ship steaming towards the island, bringing another boatload of vacationers. She smiled sadly. One island of peace furtively making its way between others. "Setsuna, I wonder if I'm getting soft." Setsuna raised an eyebrow. "How so?" "Wandering around here, I feel as if I would be content to stay here forever. Forget about college and Sailor Senshi and the world and just spend my life on a beach. Do you think I'm getting soft, thinking such a thing?" "No, I think you just needed a rest, that's all. Nothing wrong with that." Ami smiled. "I suppose. I was going to be doing a special lab project this week, but I'm glad I came here." "I'm glad you came too. It's not often we've all gotten a chance to relax together, I thought this was just what we needed." "It's definitely what I needed." It hadn't been hard for Setsuna to convince Ami to accept her invitation ... or to convince the others, for that matter. And she was right, it had been a long time since they could all be together. Even if they all found different diversions the moment they showed up. "You know, we should go for a midnight swim tonight." Ami frowned. "You mean, after dark?" "Sure. Swimming on the edge of the ocean at night, it looks like an immense event horizon stretched out before you. It's like dancing at the edge of the abyss." Ami chuckled. "Setsuna, you have a strange aesthetic sense. But you're right, it might be fun. And it should get dark quickly here, at this latitude I can probably see stars I wouldn't see at home." Saying that suddenly reminded Ami of something else. "You know, ever since the Sailor Starlights left, I've been kicking myself for not even asking them which star they're from. It might even be visible, through a telescope if nothing else." "Perhaps it's just as well you didn't. The Princess was very fond of Seiya-san. If she knew where his home was, she might be tempted to drag us all over there, just to visit him." Ami stopped walking. "Setsuna ... are you serious?" "What, about how Usagi-san feels?" "No no, about travelling to another star." Setsuna smiled. "Well, it's not something I would recommend just to pay a social call, but it wouldn't be all that difficult. It would be just a series of long-distance teleports, much like the way we got to Nomura's Cloud. Ami ... are you okay?" "Um ... could we go sit down for a second?" "Of course." They walked over to an outdoor cafe that was just next to the boardwalk and picked one of the little round tables. Setsuna steered Ami to one of the seats that was shaded by the umbrella, then sat down beside her. After half a minute, a waiter came by. Setsuna ordered ice tea for both of them. Some time after their drinks arrived, Ami spoke again. "Setsuna, why did you never mention this before?" "That we can travel between the stars? I'm sorry, I just assumed you would have drawn that conclusion. If the Starlights could do it, why not us?" Ami spent some more time staring into space. "You're right, I should have come to that conclusion. So all the Senshi in the Galaxy ... any of them could do the same." "Almost certainly. That's the way Galaxia was able to sweep through the galaxy the way she did. The Senshi under her control, boosted by the power of the Star Seeds she had collected, could go anywhere they wanted." "Galaxia ..." Ami said. She rested her head on one hand, feeling weary, as if the heat had suddenly become oppressive. "It's something I haven't thought of for a while, but ... I've never been able to get my head around what she did. If we're to believe the story, she practically depopulated the galaxy. Hundreds ... maybe thousands of worlds laid waste." "And now she has to try and set it right again." Ami looked intently at her companion. "Setsuna, do you think she can really do it? I mean, restore all those people whose Star Seeds she took? Restore their worlds?" Setsuna looked out to the ocean. Ami just waited, watching the breeze play with the ancient woman's long hair. When Setsuna spoke, it seemed to be mostly to herself. "I'm not sure the Princess understood what she was asking, when she tasked Galaxia to return all those souls to their own worlds. I'm not sure I understand either. On each world, Galaxia may need to reawaken the Senshi who were born there, use their power to restore the worlds to what they were. It may take millennia. And even then, those worlds might not be what they were." "Our world is not what it was," Ami replied after a moment of silence. She was looking in the opposite direction. Setsuna turned around and followed her gaze. Behind the food bar where the cafe's cook worked, there was a television hung from the ceiling of the little wood building. It was hard to see from here, but Ami recognized the CNN logo on the screen. The picture was obviously being taken from a moving vehicle that bounced slowly across a rough road. As it moved, the camera panned across bodies lining the road. There seemed to be no end to them. They were all tied, all lying where they had been shot. Another mass execution. Ami didn't need to read the text in the logo to know that these were more pictures of the ethnic cleansing in east Asia. "Ami, that has always gone on. Believe me, I've seen worse with my own eyes. Many times. The only difference is now we can watch it right from our little islands of peace." "It's different now." Setsuna sighed. "Yes, it's different now." In the past four years, it seemed the islands of peace in the world had grown smaller, weaker, pressed in on all sides by the madness. People in the islands had grown jaded, almost able to ignore the fact that it was only getting worse. "Was it our fault?" Ami knew it was an unfair question. Irrational. But it was a question she couldn't help asking herself. It was a moment before Setsuna replied. "This all started with Galaxia's foolish attempt to seal away Chaos so long ago. But in her moment of victory, the temptation to make that victory complete, permanent ... I find it impossible to blame even her. But it was inevitable that Chaos would have to be unleashed again someday, nothing and nobody can hold it forever." "And now we're paying the price for that." Setsuna nodded. "Our world was at ... what is that term they use ... at 'ground zero' when Chaos was set free again. It stands to reason we would feel the worst effects. The demons that we struggle with, that all men and women struggle with all their lives, have been given new strength. So the war with those demons rages all the more fiercely." Ami tore her eyes away from the television, resolved not to look at the pageant of death any longer, met Setsuna's eyes instead. "You call it a war, but it's more like a disease. For us, evil used to be monsters and mad sorcerors. We could go fight them and make things right again. But it's like there are no more monsters, there's just this disease eating away at our peace, little by little." Ami was surprised by Setsuna laying a hand over hers. She tried to calm herself. She hadn't realized, she had almost been shouting. Her gaze dropped down. "Sorry." Setsuna continued to hold her hand, gave her a few moments to calm down. "Ami, peace has always been an elusive thing. It's never more than an island of calm, and it never lasts. I don't know if it can ever be any different, I don't know if we can ever make it any different." She smiled at Ami. "Maybe our Princess can. Someday. She has faith in the Light of Hope, the light that exists in all of us. Maybe all we can do is share her faith." Ami smiled. Yes, faith. There was one other who had asked her to have faith, when she was in the midst of utter despair. One whom she loved and trusted just as she did their Princess. "Okay. I think I can manage that. It's just that lately I haven't been able to shake this feeling, like this isn't just more wars ... like it could just fall to pieces, we could lose it *all*. When you just now told me we could go to the stars ... well, I've always assumed we would do that someday. I mean, humanity, in ships we make to sail among the stars. But now I feel as if that may never happen, that we could all fall down a pit and never come out." This time, she had managed to say it without working herself into a frenzy. Setsuna had her inscrutable, expressionless look again. "Ami, I won't lie to you. I'm probably in a better position than anybody to judge the health of any human civilization. I've seen so many rise and fall, I've long since learned what to look for. The release of chaos has dealt ours a body blow from which it may never recover. We could very well be facing a new dark age, perhaps a long one. But that danger has always been there. That's nothing new, it's just more obvious now, more out in the open." Ami sighed. "So I should just have faith?" "That's one thing you can do." Setsuna suddenly smiled again. Ami liked her smile, it could instantly transform her from the immortal warrior to the kind-hearted woman Ami had come to know. "If you want to do your bit, help hold our peace together, then keep doing as you have been and become a fine doctor. I've seen what healers can do, the hope they can bring to people. With your strong mind and warm heart, I really think you could work wonders." Ami resisted the urge to lean over and kiss her. "Thank you, Setsuna," she said, her voice slightly husky. "I mean ... for everything." Setsuna just nodded. They contented themselves with watching the ocean for a while. When they finished their drinks, they continued their way along the beach. Ami spotted them first. "Looks like they're still at it." "What did I tell you?" Ami watched them as she and Setsuna got closer and closer. Eventually, they came to the part of the boardwalk just a few meters from where their four friends were. She and Setsuna didn't say a word. They just sat back against the wood railing that edged the boardwalk and watched. The other four hadn't even noticed them. This morning the white sand around the volleyball net had been perfectly smooth, but hours of play had effectively packed it down. Ami noted that they had brought the oversized cooler down next to the net. No doubt so that they wouldn't have to bother themselves with walking the few meters over to the nearest concession stand to replenish their liquids. Haruka and Michiru were to their left. Haruka, with her slim figure, short blonde hair, androgynous looks and mannerisms, was often mistaken for a man, something she did nothing to discourage. Of course nobody would be making that mistake today, like the others she was in a two piece bathing suit that left little to the imagination. For better mobility, she had insisted. Michiru was an interesting contrast to her. She had a similar build, just a slightly fuller figure. Her lovely, elegant face had a look of calm focus, very unlike Haruka's aggressive look if fierce defiance. Her extraordinary turquoise hair was tied back into a loose ponytail, keeping it out of her bluegreen eyes. Minako and Makoto were to their right. Minako was shorter than the other three women. Her long blonde hair was tied back away from her eyes with her trademark red ribbon, but otherwise was loose, bobbing and waving about like a cape as she played. Her light blue eyes sparkled with life, her impish smile almost mocking. Makoto had her wavy brown hair tied back in its usual topknot. She was as tall as their two opponents, and more well muscled than any of them. Ami suspected she spent extra time in a gym pumping iron, above and beyond the Sailor Senshi training she did with the rest of them. Her expression mirrored Haruka's. They seemed to be watching each other a lot. They all looked like hell. Setsuna chuckled lightly. "Haruka and Michiru were probably expecting to have an easy time of it." "It looks like they got more than they bargained for," Ami said, also in a low voice. The two of them watched the game for a while. None of the women were moving with the same speed and grace they were this morning. But it was remarkable how well they were all holding out, considering how long they had been at it. Minako was clearly the most skilled and experienced player of the four. What her partner lacked in skill, she made up for in brute power. She was tireless, indefatigable. And when set up properly she could deliver a spike ball that was barely subsonic. Their opponents would probably have never had a prayer, were it not that their teamwork was so much better. It was like they were telepathic, they seemed to move as one creature with four arms and four legs. When Ami and Setsuna had left them, they were going to just do best two out of three. It had obviously gone far beyond that. It didn't look like anybody was prepared to concede defeat. "You've got that faraway look again," Setsuna commented with a sideways glance to Ami. "I was just thinking. Except for Hotaru, all of us are past the age where we're going to grow anymore. If things happen the way we think they will ... with Crystal Tokyo and all ... well, the way we look now, that's how we'll all look for at least the next thousand years." "Well, Makoto-san won't look like *that* unless she remains in the habit of repeatedly lifting weights heavier than herself." "I don't know, with her height I think the extra muscle looks good on her. But standing next to her, I always feel like I'm still a little girl. I was hoping I'd catch up a bit by now but you're all still taller than me. Sometimes I feel a bit jealous." Setsuna looked her up and down. "You needn't, you've filled out very nicely since I first met you." "Setsuna! Honestly, sometimes you're worse than Mako-chan." "And Urawa-san seems to like you quite well the way you are." "Stop it ..." Ami could feel a flush come to her cheeks. "If you want a second opinion, ask Haruka, she thinks you're very cute." "I'm sorry I brought it up," Ami said, exasperated. They watched a bit longer, until Michiru scored a point that ended the current game. "What do you say we call them over here and invite them to go for drinks?" Setsuna suggested. "Good idea. Otherwise, they'll probably go until one of them collapses from heat exhaustion." "Okay. Maybe we could drop a subtle hint, get them to go for a shower first." "Oh, I'm all for that." ***** **So how did you like the show?** Shoji asked as they walked out of the theatre building. **It was really good,** Yui replied, smiling up at him. **I wish I'd seen it on video a long time ago. In fact, I'd like to go pick up the LD, if it's still around.** **Well, 'Akira' is one movie that really loses something on video.** **Yeah, I guess it would. I'm glad you spotted this revival. I thought the Esper parts were really good, better than Locke. It was almost like they'd seen one of us using our powers.** **Well, I've heard stories, about some of the stuff the black sheep of the family do. Anyway, you want to 'port back home?** **I'd kinda like to walk.** **Okay.** Shoji put his arm around her shoulders, and they walked in the direction of their apartment. At seventeen, Yui was now only a few centimetres shorter than him . But she still wore the same short hair, tight jeans and T-shirts she had gotten into the habit of wearing four years ago. Shoji thought she still looked very cute. **Senpai, can we go see the Crystal again sometime?** **What, again? We just went last month. I thought grandma Himiko scared you.** **She does. But I like seeing the Crystal.** A lot of the Ancients liked seeing the crystal these days. Most went there a few times a year now. In a world that seemed to be slowly going mad, it was a great source of comfort. Shoji felt it a bit himself. After four years it was still glowing brightly, as if it would never fade away. Still emanating that lovely image of a great, shining crystal citadel. **I suppose we could go next weekend. Maybe we can 'port to the farm too, do some horseback riding.** **Yeah, that would be fun.** They were walking out of the main entertainment district now, so there weren't as many neon signs and the sidewalks were getting less crowded. They could better enjoy the warm summer evening now. The streets were still damp from an earlier shower, but Shoji could glimpse the occasional star overhead, there probably wouldn't be any more rain. Not that it was ever a problem, if inclement weather caught them by surprise Yui could just 'port them home. They passed by an ATM. **That reminds me, we're getting a bit low on cash.** Shoji glanced around, saw that there was nobody in sight. **Take care of it, okay?** **Okay.** Yui stepped up to the machine and put her hand against it. Its lights were off, closed down for the night. Shoji could never understand the logic behind shutting them down after hours. He heard that in America, you could use ATMs twenty four hours a day. Not that it really made a difference to them. After a few seconds, Shoji could hear machinery working inside the ATM. Yui had brought it to life. **How much?** she asked. **A hundred ... no, better make that two hundred thousand yen.** **Coming right up.** There was more clattering, and soon the machine spat out a thick sheaf of bills. Yui took them, rolled them up and put them in her pocket of her denim vest. She winked at Shoji and they continued on their way. Shoji grinned. Kaori had suggested that as soon as Yui moved in with him Shoji should have her handle the household finances. She wasn't his wife yet, but Kaori thought she should learn to take responsibility. Shoji had agreed this was a very good idea. It was just as well they didn't know exactly how Yui was handling the finances. Kaori in particular frowned upon this sort of thing. They passed by the entrance of a park. The black iron gate was open, inviting them into the woods beyond. It was quite dark, the walkways lighted only by the occasional lamps. **Oh Senpaaai ...** Yui said. Shoji could sense the playfulness in her telepathic voice. He could guess what she wanted. **Yes, Yui dear?** he said, playing their usual game. **I want to go hunting.** **Hunting what, Yui dear?** She grinned. **Whatever we can find.** **Well then, lead the way.** She took his arm and they strolled into the park. It looked deserted. The benches were still wet, not very inviting for young lovers looking for a dark quiet intimate place. They heard a noise in front of them, and stopped. They waited a few seconds. A cat poked its head out of the bushes, and stepped hesitantly out onto the walkway. It looked at them and meowed again. Shoji looked down at Yui and raised an eyebrow. **Start small?** **Sure, why not?** Shoji took a step forward and went down on his haunches. He held out his hand and beckoned. "Here, kitty kitty. Nice kitty." The cat stood a few seconds, then began to make its way very cautiously towards him. It came up close, sniffing at his fingers. Yui stepped forward. Too quickly. The cat turned and bolted. Shoji flicked his hand and a fireball burst into life right in front of the cat, flickering and burning a dull orange red. It lit up the walkway somewhat. Shoji kept it small, not wanting to attract attention. The cat was momentarily paralyzed by its instinctive fear of fire. Yui didn't waste the opportunity. She quickly crouched down behind the cat and put her hands over it. It convulsed, then fell down to the ground. Shoji let the fireball fade away. Now the animal was truly paralyzed. The most it could manage was little mewling sounds. Its body quivered now and then. Little spots of light started to form all over its body, like it was being covered with fireflies. They swirled over it, then started to converge on a point in between Yui's two hands. The cat lay utterly still now. Shoji stepped over to the other side of the stricken animal, and Yui stood up straight. She still held its lifeforce in between her hands. To Shoji's eyes, it looked like a little nebula or galaxy, countless points of lights all swirling about in a little ball. Shoji stared into the meaningless pattern of light, concentrating on what his inner eye was telling him. Yui was concentrating on holding it in place, so it was always easier for Shoji to read it. **Let's see. She's owned by a family living in an apartment. Young couple and a little boy. Seems to spend most of its time there. Maybe they're not supposed to have pets and they have to keep it a secret. She got lured out here by some tomcat, but ended up chasing him away. She was tracking a mouse when she heard us. Thought she would get a handout or something.** **Pretty boring.** **Well, housecats rarely lead exciting lives. Want to put it back?** **Sure.** Yui crouched down and held the cat's lifeforce over it's body. The kaleidoscope of little lights slowly fluttered down, disappearing inside it. When they were all gone, Yui stood up and they both stepped away from it. The cat's eyes came open. It lifted its head, looked around. Slowly, it got to its feet. It looked a little unsteady. It took one look at Yui, and something clicked in its mind. It turned and bolted into the bushes. "What are you kids doing?" They both turned. Of course Yui could not hear the voice, but she got a telepathic cue from Shoji that somebody nearby had spoken. It was a fat, middle aged woman in a shapeless raincoat and carrying a paper shopping bag. She walked towards them. She didn't look happy. Her face was one that Shoji could not imagine ever looking happy. A true obatarian. She strode up to them and scowled at each of them in turn. She was shorter than both of them. "What were you doing to that poor cat? You were kicking it around weren't you? I saw it lying on the ground. I suppose you think it's funny, don't you?" Yui looked up at Shoji. **Should I do her?** **I say go for it.** Yui didn't even bother stepping close to the woman. She just raised up her hands, and suddenly every muscle in her body tensed and her lips curled up into a wolf grin. "Wha-" That was all the old woman got out. Her body jerked and a blizzard of little lights shot out of her, straight into a point between Yui's hands. She fell to the ground. Her lifeforce writhed and rippled from the rough treatment, then settled into a gentle, swirling pattern. Shoji winced. **Ouch. That was harsh.** Yui sniffed. **Stupid old bitch. Should have minded her own business. Funny we didn't feel her approach.** She turned around to face Shoji so that he could get a better look. **Well, obatarians are naturally devious, and we were distracted.** Shoji bent close and stared into the lights. Since Yui had discovered this new talent, they had done a fair amount of experimenting on all sorts of animals, both the two legged and the four legged variety. They were pretty good at it now. **Oh my ... she's been a very bad girl. Cheated on her husband a couple of times ... in her younger days of course. These days just some casual shoplifting ... slipping fruits into her handbag and such. Stealing from her neighbour's garden too.** **Sounds like a real cow. Plant a suggestion, Senpai.** **Sure, why not.** Shoji concentrated, directing his will into the lifeforce floating before him. **Listen to me. When you wake up you are going to run home, tell your husband about all your past indiscretions in as much detail as you can, and then you are going to beg his forgiveness.** Yui grinned. **That's a good one. I hope she didn't sprain anything on the way down, I want her to get home while that's fresh in her mind.** **Well, the way you ripped out her lifeforce, she could be out for a while. Better put it back, she's going to be in rough shape as it is.** **Okay.** Yui walked over to the woman and casually flicked her wrists. The little motes of light spread out and cascaded down on her body. In a few seconds, they were all gone. Shoji shook his head. **Man, she's going to feel like shit when she comes to.** **Serves her right.** **Anyway, we should probably leave.** Shoji put his arm around Yui and steered her towards the nearest exit. Suddenly he stopped. **I sense somebody coming.** Yui looked around. **Where?** **Not sure. Somebody could find her lying there, it's probably not a good idea to be seen here. We should 'port out.** **Okay.** Yui took his hand. In the blink of an eye they were elsewhere. Shoji looked around. **Why here?** He had been expecting her to take them home. She linked her hands behind her head and backed away from him, smiling. **Oh, I don't know.** She did a little pirouette, which looked like it was helped a bit by levitation, spread her arms out wide then came to a stop again. **I kind of like it here. Somehow it makes me feel warm and cozy.** It was a little Shinto shrine they had visited a couple of times before. The grounds were barely big enough to hold the building and a little open space in front of it. The building looked very old, no doubt it had been here long before the city had spread out and swallowed up the land around it. Now it was nestled right in between an office tower and an apartment block. The shrine was still beautiful, but to Shoji it looked silly standing in this concrete jungle. Tokyo city planning, gotta love it. **Warm and cozy, huh? I don't know, there are a lot nicer shrines than this.** He casually sauntered across the crushed rock. The area was fairly well lit, just because of the various street and building lights, but of course it was closed and locked up for the night. **Yeah, but not too many shrines give me that warm feeling.** Shoji knew that Yui was sensitive to some things that he wasn't, but he'd never heard this before. **So you definitely feel something different here?** **Yeah, and in a couple of other places. It's like ... I don't know, like the place had a lifeforce of it's own.** She looked towards the building and smiled. **It's almost like when I'm looking at an animal. I feel like I can reach out and touch it's lifeforce.** Shoji chuckled. Yui was always more lively and expressive after doing a hunt. He liked it. **A lifeforce, huh?** She looked at him suspiciously. **Do you think I'm imagining it?** He shrugged. **I don't know. Why don't you try pulling it out and see what comes up?** Yui seemed taken aback by his suggestion. She looked back at the building. She didn't say anything. Shoji just stood waiting. He was well attuned to her, could tell that she was concentrating, probing with her inner eye. She looked at him again. **You know, I really feel like I could.** Shoji had been joking, but he could see that she was serious. **Yui, are you sure?** Expanding the limits of their powers was one thing that no Ancient ever took lightly. **Yes, I can feel it clear as day. It would be just another hunt.** Well, except that this prey couldn't put up much of a fight. **Why don't you give it a try?** She smiled and nodded. She walked closer to the shrine building and stood before it. She held her arms out before her, palms forward and slightly inward. Shoji stood behind her, watching her. He could feel her aura expanding as she directed it out toward the building. Then he felt something else becoming visible to his inner eye. It was becoming clearer now, just as it always became clearer as Yui was extracting lifeforce from an animal. There was almost a sense of vertigo, as his eyes saw an inanimate building but his feelings saw an animal. His eyes went back to Yui. He could see the tension in her body, could feel the effort she was expending. She was crouched down now, completely focused. Whatever she was trying to pull out of there, it wasn't coming easily. It was a little while longer before the dull rumble registered in his conscious mind. The ground was shaking. The air around Yui was starting to stir, whipping her short hair around. It was getting worse. She seemed to be oblivious to it. *Oh shit.* Shoji was balancing the relative merits of interrupting her or allowing her to continue. When an Ancient of her power was this highly focused, interrupting her could cause unexpected side effects. She might end up shooting out a kinetite that would take down a whole building. The way things were going, that might happen anyway. He looked around him. At least the effect was strictly localized, she wasn't letting any of the side effects bleed off. That meant she still had good control. Fine, let her continue then. It all happened at once. The earth around the shrine building erupted, spewing dirt and gravel into the air. The timbers and logs of the shrine building all shattered at once, and it started collapsing to the ground. A galaxy of dazzling light motes flew out of the collapsing shrine and into the air. The building finished collapsing. The lights all drifted together and settled to a point between Yui's hands. The dust slowly settled. Everything was quiet. Shoji had come down hard, his ass smarted. It looked like Yui had come down just as hard. But she looked too mesmerized by what had happened to care much. Shoji got up and walked over to stand beside her. She was staring wide-eyed at what she held between her hands. **Senpai ... it's beautiful.** Shoji would have to agree. It was many times brighter than any animal's lifeforce had looked. Instead of little blue-white motes, each light seemed to be a tiny little flame, all of different colours. They floated about at a much more leisurely pace than the lively little motes of an animal lifeforce. Shoji could hear shouts of alarm from nearby. Better book it. **Yui, we'd better get out of here real quick. Can you put that back now?** **Put it back where?** Shoji glanced over at the pile of rubble where the shrine building used to be. Oh great. **Yui ... do you think you can 'port us while you're holding on to that?** She smiled. She looked a little spaced. **Right now I feel like I can do anything.** She stood up, careful to keep her hands around the floating lights. I sure hope so, Shoji thought. He took a hold of her wrist. **Then take us home.** Their living room swam around him. Shoji staggered, but managed to stay on his feet. That had been a bad one, Yui was either tired or distracted. She was already sitting down on the couch. Maybe she had just fallen back onto it. **Are you okay?** She just nodded. She was still mesmerized by what she was holding. Shoji sat down hard on a chair opposite her. He spent a few minutes letting his head clear and his panic adrenaline bleed away. Then he leaned forward and had a closer look at Yui's prize. He tried reading it the same way he had learned to read the lifeforce that Yui pulled out of animals. Yui looked at him. **Do you see anything?** She could guess what he was trying to do. **Not really. It feels the same, but there's no memories, no images, no thoughts. It's just white noise, random. Just power, no mind.** **Yes, there's lots of power here. It feels all tingly. I like it.** She smiled at Shoji. **Can I keep it?** She acted like they had just found a little puppy. Shoji leaned back and sighed. He closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He hadn't thought this far ahead. They'd never had one of these things that they couldn't put back. **Senpai, is something wrong?** **No, I'm just thinking. We have to do something with this.** He opened his eyes and gestured to the floating kaleidoscope of light. **After all, you can't keep holding it like that forever. If you just let it go there's no telling what would happen You remember the last time.** She nodded solemnly. When they were first experimenting with this she had pulled the lifeforce from a little squirrel. It had died of shock or something. When she let go of its lifeforce it had practically exploded in her hand. It had felt like daggers shooting through their brains, they had both had a headache for hours. And what she held was many, many times more powerful. Yui's face fell. She was beginning to see what a bind they were in. Shoji tried to smile. **Don't worry, I'll think of something.** Her face suddenly brightened. **I know! We can take it to grandma Himiko. She's got these leaded flask things with wards on them. The ones they use to hold the guardian spirits that protect the house. They would probably hold this.** Shoji shuddered. The Matriarch. He could just imagine what she would say about all this. But Yui was right, she would be the one most able to deal with this. Any other option looked too risky. He stood up. **Okay, we might as well get this over with. Listen, when we talk to the Matriarch, try to emphasize that you were just trying out something new with your powers and it got messed up. She's always preaching about us pushing the limits of our powers, and brother you sure did that tonight.** Yui frowned. **Nobody can lie to the Matriarch. It can't be done.** **There's a difference between lying and putting a spin on things.** She thought about that for a moment, then nodded. **Okay, I'm ready.** **That last 'port was kind of rough. Are you sure you don't want me to call mom's place and have somebody come help?** Yui smiled sheepishly. **Sorry about that. I was a little out of it. But I'm okay now, I feel like I could 'port to the moon.** **By the First Ancestor, be careful what you think!** She giggled. **Don't worry, I won't do that. But just in case, maybe hold your breath.** **That ... is ... not ... funny.** Yui winked. **Sorry. I'll be good.** Shoji leaned forward and gave her a kiss. **Just get us there in one piece.** He hesitated just a second before taking her wrist. Darkness. Shoji had a moment of panic, then spotted the light of a familiar looking lantern. He let out a shuddering breath. After sunset and no electricity, of course it was bloody dark here. They should have turned out the lights in the living room first, let their eyes adjust. Yes, he was doing just a fine job of goal directed planning today. "Who goes there?" Yui jumped too. The bellowing voice had been accompanied by a sending. Shoji sighed. *'Who goes there' he says. These people are so precious.* He turned in the direction of the voice and waved. **Shoji.** **Yui.** The man approached them. He was carrying a small lantern. One of the Matriarch's guards, naturally. He became more clearly visible, now that he was in the light emanated by the physical manifestation of the shrine's lifeforce. He looked at the thing, managing to look solemn and disgusted all at once. **What on earth is that?** Shoji decided to deadpan. **It is the lifeforce of a Shinto shrine. Yui-san was extracting it with the purpose of letting us examine it and see what we could learn from it. But in the process the shrine collapsed and we were unable to return the lifeforce to its normal place. We are unsure how to dispose of it. We seek the advice of the Matriarch.** The man's expression did not change as he chewed on that. **Follow me.** He led them through the garden and to the front doorway. Shoji had to help Yui take her shoes off. She could probably keep the lifeforce stable with one hand if she concentrated, but they didn't want to take the risk. The guard admitted them to one of the sitting rooms where they sat down on cushions. He lit two more lanterns there. Shoji suppressed a smile. The lifeforce was probably lighting this room brighter than it had ever been. Himiko's people were creatures of habit if nothing else. The man solemnly commanded them to wait here and closed the door behind them. **You still feeling okay?** Shoji asked. He was very careful to focus his thoughts directly on her. There were people in this house who could pull a casually sent message right out of the air. **Yes, I'm fine.** Yui's face had a spooky look, underlit by the glowing lights floating between her hands, but her expression was calm. Her voice was low and flat as well, the sign of a tight sending. Neither of them really had any friends in this household, they never felt comfortable here. They only ever came here to see the Crystal. They were doing things that the Matriarch didn't approve of, some of which she knew about and some of which she didn't. There was plenty of reason to feel paranoid. After a few minutes the door slid open again. The Matriarch walked into the room, dressed in a simple, functional kimono. She looked at Shoji and then at Yui. **I have been told what has happened.** Having said that, she sat herself down in front of Yui and examined what she held there. She sat there for about a minute, neither moving nor speaking. Then she stood up again. **Follow me.** They followed her through the house and into the back garden. She took a lantern down off one of the hooks, and walked over to the big stone in the middle of the dark little garden. **Into the caves.** She stepped onto the stone and vanished. Shoji looked down at Yui. **Want me to go first?** **Okay.** She looked nervous. He felt nervous. The Matriarch was inscrutable at the best of time, but Shoji had no idea what to read into her attitude. Shoji stepped onto the stone. This stone and its counterpart in the caves were the strongest focus points the Ancients had ever devised. It was one of the few places Shoji could reliably teleport by himself. He concentrated, and was in darkness again. He stepped off the stone. His headache wasn't too bad this time, it would pass quickly. Yui appeared with the lifeforce, bathing the cave with light. Without a word, the Matriarch led them through the tunnels, all the way to the entrance to the cave of the Seed Crystal. It shone brightly as ever, drowning out the glow of the little light motes dancing between Yui's arms. The Matriarch reached into the front of her kimono and pulled out a little round milky white crystal. She put it down on the stone floor. She looked at Yui, indicated a place next to the crystal **Sit.** Yui knelt down there, and looked nervously to the Matriarch again. **Don't fret, this will be simple, even for a young pup like you. You know how you apply pressure to the lifeforce like a soft PK barrier, keeping it together, keeping it stable?** The young girl nodded. **I want you to put it overtop of the crystal and lower it down until some of the psychoplasm starts bouncing off it. Then I want you to gradually increase that pressure, gradually make your PK barrier harder.** **What's going to happen?** **You'll see.** Yui did as she was told. The motes of light that made up the lifeforce started to press closer and closer together, moving around faster and faster, getting brighter and brighter. Yui moved her hands in. Shoji could actually see the psychokinesis barrier now, like a shimmering transparent bubble held between her hands, confining the little motes of light to a smaller and smaller area. The lights disappeared, and suddenly the crystal was glowing brightly. It was all over in an instant. Yui squealed, and her PK barrier collapsed. The Matriarch picked up the crystal and walked over to the cave wall. She reached over her head and placed it on a little shelf that had been carved into the wall. Shoji realized that it looked something like the other glowing crystals that used to light up this room before the change in the Seed Crystal made them reductant. But they had never been that bright, this one was almost painful to look at. The Matriarch walked back to where Yui sat. The girl still looked stunned by what had happened. Himiko looked down at her, her hands at her hips. **I suppose you're feeling very proud of yourself.** Yui looked bewildered. **Matriarch ... ?** **You think you made some great discovery, that holy places have souls like living things? You think you're the first person to ever find that out? Why do you think we always tell you to consult your elders before trying something new with your powers? I could have told you exactly what would happen. And believe me, it could have been a great deal worse. If you had lost control of that lifeforce, let it go free right in front of you, it could have killed you.** Yui looked down at the ground. **I'm sorry, Matriarch.** **That isn't even the half of it!** Shoji and Yui both flinched. Her sending had been like a physical blow. **You tried this damned fool thing right in the middle of a city, with thousands of outsiders around you. What if you had gotten some of them killed? What if you had been hurt and they had seen what you did? You could be sitting in a detention cell trying to explain how you managed to collapse a building all by yourself. And do you know what would have happened then?** Yui shook her head, still looking down at the ground. **Even if you were in condition to 'port yourself out, I would have to send people in there to kill or mind-wipe anyone who had seen what you did. And if they couldn't do that well then we would have to make you disappear. We'd lock you in a cave you couldn't 'port out of and that's where you'd stay for the rest of your life. We've done it before, done it to stupid young fools who didn't even have the sense not to try out new powers in the middle of a nest of outsiders!** Yui was sobbing now. The Matriarch fixed her gaze on Shoji. He had his best poker face on. **I thought at least you would have more sense than this.** He lowered his gaze. **I should have taken better care of her, I know that.** He surprised himself by finding that he meant it. Gods, she really *could* have been killed! **They'll prepare a room. Take her back to the house and put her to bed. I'll talk to you both in the morning. Make no mistake, I am far from being done with you.** She took her lantern and walked out of the cave. Shoji went to sit down beside Yui. He gathered her in his arms and held her. She continued to sob softly. **We really blew it, huh?** he quipped. He could feel her head nod. Shoji tried to think through what might happen. Yui was of age now, by Ancients reckoning, so she could only be punished for a direct violation of their laws. The destruction of outsider property definitely qualified, but the Matriarch seemed to accept that part as being an accident. Which it had been. One hell of an accident. At worst, they'd be getting the cold shoulder for a while. Which was nothing new, really. A little obsequious grovelling and this would all blow over. There was something else tickling at the back of his mind. It was something in the room, he couldn't quite put his finger on it. He looked around. Had they changed something in here? It looked the same. No, it was more a feeling. He directed his inner eye at the Seed Crystal. His jaw dropped down. **Yui-chan?** She sniffed. Her sobbing was pretty much done. She leaned away from him, wiped her tears away and looked at him with her red-rimmed eyes. **Yes, Senpai?** **Have a look at the Seed Crystal's telepathic image and tell me if I'm crazy.** She looked. Her mouth dropped open and she gasped. She stared in wonder for a few moments before she spoke. **It's so clear, much more vivid than before. It's like I'm standing right in front of it. It looks like the central tower is a thousand meters high!** **So it's not just me. We were here just last month, this must be recent. If it's so obvious just looking at it, why didn't we hear about it? It's the first change in the Crystal in four years, everybody would be screaming about it.** Yui thought about that. Shoji was happy to see that this new mystery had taken her mind off the Matriarch's grilling. **Unless ... it started just now. Tonight.** **Seems like quite a coincidence, us coming here and ... ** his sending trailed away. He looked over at the crystal set in the wall, the one with the lifeforce from the shrine. Yui pointed at it. **Do you think it's because we brought that here?** **It makes sense. Think about it. We're always hearing about how certain holy places can enhance our powers. Especially making telepathy and clairvoyance sharper.** Yui nodded. She actually looked a little excited now. **Yes! Senpai, maybe all those holy places have a lifeforce like that. When I was holding it I felt ... almost invincible.** **Don't be thinking that. Makes it sound too much like a cocaine rush.** She smiled. **It's like we've brought a portable holy place right into the Seed Crystal room. A lot of the clairvoyants come here because they say it makes their visions sharper, maybe it will be even better now!** Shoji grinned. **You know, I think tomorrow isn't going to go so badly for us after all.** ***** "Check." Ami said as she took Setsuna's pawn. Setsuna looked at the little chessboard. Her frown deepened. She leaned back and sighed. "That's it, tomorrow we go back to tennis. I concede." Ami smiled. "Thank you for the game, you played very well." "Ami, you beat me every single game." "Well it wasn't easy, you really made me work for it." Setsuna's mouth twisted into a smirk. "Ami, haven't we had this conversation before?" Ami folded up the little travel chess set. "Anyway, tennis tomorrow sounds great." "I'm glad you agree. I was afraid you might want to play Go! next." "No, it's not really my game. Ryou beats me at Go! about as often as I beat him at chess." "Oh dear, I hope that's not all you two are doing with your time." Ami stabbed a finger at her. "Don't start." Setsuna put her hands up in surrender. "I hope he doesn't feel too badly, us taking you away from him for a week." "No, he understands that this time was for us. It helps, him knowing who I really am. I can tell him about things I can't even tell my mother." Setsuna smiled. "Yes, you're very lucky to have him." She looked out over the ocean, smiled wistfully. "Somebody you don't need to keep any secrets from." Ami watched Setsuna carefully. She thought she was missing something there, but decided to let it pass. She took another sip of her lemonade, and joined her friend in contemplating the seawater sparkling under the noonday sun. They had been here five days now and she still hadn't tired of the sight. "I don't believe you two!" They both looked to see Minako standing over them, hands at her hips. "You must be the only people in the world who would come all the way down here just to play chess!" "I think they're the smart ones," Haruka said, coming up behind Minako. "They didn't get pulled into the beach volleyball marathon from hell." "Tell me about it," Makoto said. She walked past the other two, pulled one of the empty seats at the table and sat down heavily. "Oof. Yeah, chess is suddenly looking very appealing right now." "I'll settle for a drink," Michiru said. She signalled a waiter and gestured to the pitcher of lemonade on the table. He nodded understanding ... refill and more glasses. "Wimps," Minako said, taking her seat. "Volleyball is the sport that God made beaches for." "Oh, I don't know," Michiru said, looking out over the top of her small sunglasses. "There are lots of other interesting things to do on beaches." Haruka was suddenly looking very uncomfortable. "Right," Makoto agreed. "That midnight swim was cool, we should do that again tonight." Haruka relaxed a bit. "Fine, as long as Ami doesn't go missing again," Minako said in a huff. "I had just gone to do some stargazing," Ami said. "Yeah, but we didn't know that, we thought you had drowned or something. That scared the hell out of me!" Ami took her hand and kissed it. "I said I was sorry." Minako smiled a little. "Well, just don't do it again. Tonight, I'm your swimming buddy and I'm sticking to you like a barnacle." "I take it you're done with your marathon," Setsuna said. The four of them had changed after their shower, it was the first time Ami recalled seeing them in anything other than bathing suits since getting here. "We negotiated an armistice," Haruka said. "Michiru has to give Minako her firstborn or something, I don't remember the details." Michiru took off her shades, regarded her partner. "That's not quite how I remember it. I believe you had to promise to take Minako out on a date ..." "Oh, right." "... followed by a torrid night of passion at a love hotel of her choice." "WHAT?" Minako and Haruka, simultaneously. "Uh, guys," Makoto said, "I'll back you up on this, I definitely do not remember that last part." Michiru looked thoughtful. "Maybe I'm getting that mixed up with something else." The waiter came by with their lemonade, and some of them took the opportunity to order ice cream. "Hey, don't forget about us," came a voice just as the waiter was about to leave. "Two more glasses, and an ice cream for my friend," Rei told the waiter. Rei and Hotaru looked like their hearts were as full as their shopping bags. They also sported brand new sun hats, shades and souvenir T-shirts. Rei had her long, lustrous black hair tied about halfway down her back, keeping it off her shoulders. She had gotten more well tanned than any of them, right now she was about as dark as Setsuna. Hotaru, like the others, had been diligent in using sunblock, so had kept her pale complexion. The younger girl was almost as tall as Ami now. Ami marvelled at how beautiful she had become. Her hair was almost the same purple-tinted black as Rei's, but despite repeated suggestions to let it grow still kept it cut straight just above her shoulders. "I hope you two left something in the shops for us," Minako said. "I haven't done any shopping at all yet." "I'm not surprised," Rei said. "This is the first time I've seen you off the beach." "Well, the beach is long but time is short, so we have to live each day like it would last forever." Rei cocked her head. "Uh ... right." "Dear me," Setsuna said, glancing in the shopping bag that Hotaru had set down nearby. "Didn't we overdo it a little?" "But there were all sorts of neat things, and lots of bargains," Hotaru said brightly. "Oh right, I got something for you." She reached into the bag and drew out two bright tropical flowers that had been carefully laid on top of her other shopping. She stood up and leaned over Setsuna. "Hold still." "I don't know about this," Setsuna said as Hotaru carefully placed one of the flowers in her hair over her ear. "I thought of you as soon as I saw these," Hotaru said, ignoring her. She walked over to her guardian's other side. Setsuna obediently sat still, just a hint of a smile on her lips. Ami watched as Hotaru carefully adjusted the second flower to match the first. It wasn't "Setsuna-mama" anymore, but you could still hear it in her voice. Understandably, Hotaru was clinging to this small part of her youth, the part that had not been stolen from her by the alien invaders she had saved them all from. And Setsuna looked quite content playing the role of mother for her. "Now you really look like an exotic native princess," Hotaru said when she was done. "I don't suppose you've got a grass skirt for her in there," Haruka said, peering into the shopping bag. Hotaru looked thoughtful. Setsuna pointed at her. "Don't even think about it." "I thought Usagi was with you two," Minako said to Rei. Rei sighed. "She said something about spotting watermelon for sale. Then I blinked and she was gone, it was the strangest thing." "Gee, you don't think she would eat a whole one by herself, do you?" Makoto asked innocently. They all laughed. Having found watermelon, Usagi was very unlikely to stop at just one. "Poor Mamoru," Haruka said. "His food budget must have tripled since she moved in." "You know, I'm getting very impatient with those two," Michiru said. "Oh, thank you, just leave those." The waiter had just set down a tray with their lemonade and ice cream. He bowed and withdrew. As some of the women around the table reached out and picked up their refreshments, Michiru continued. "For a year now they've been threatening to set a date for their wedding. She must have asked me three times already to be one of her bridesmaids." "Four times," Ami said, holding up that many fingers. "Five," Minako said, doing likewise. "Rei, hasn't she been asking you about what would be auspicious days?" Setsuna asked. "Sure, I've got a whole calendar marked up. Gave it to her ages ago. Say, maybe I should start a pool, guess which day she'll pick for them." "Five to one odds it's this year," Haruka said. "Three nines in the next year, that doesn't sound very auspicious." "Yeah, she is sounding serious now," Makoto said. "I'd bet it's before the end of the year." "A royal wedding," Hotaru said wistfully, her chin resting on her linked fingers. "Gee, after they're married, do we stop calling them prince and princess and start calling them king and queen?" "Technically, we should," Setsuna said. "When the Princess marries Endymion, that will unite the Earth and the Moon kingdoms. She will then be Neo-Queen Serenity." "I wonder if that would mean we've seen the last of Sailor Moon," Rei said. "What?" Minako looked shocked at the idea. "Well, as far as we know, Sailor Moon was just a legend in Chibi-usa's time," Rei continued. "Maybe when Usagi becomes Neo-queen Serenity, she doesn't need to be Sailor Moon anymore." "That would be a shame," Minako said sadly. "I'd miss her." "Yeah," Haruka said, "she really looks cute in that skirt." "Interesting." They all looked at Ami, who was staring off into space. "That might mean she loses her ability to become a Sailor Senshi after she's married. Maybe we're like valkyries and our strength lies in our maidenhood." There were strangled gasps all around the table. An ice cream spoon clattered onto the table. That seemed to snap Ami out of her trance. She laughed nervously, brought a hand up to her blushing cheek. "Ah ... sorry! I was just thinking aloud, that's all." Makoto put a hand on Ami's shoulder. "Ami-chan, that's a habit you're definitely going to have to try and break." "Minako, did you say something?" Michiru asked, looking out over her shades again. Minako blinked, her look of dread evaporated. She had mumbled something that sounded a bit like "A thousand years ..." She laughed, self-consciously rubbing the back of her neck. "Nothing, nothing..." Silence descended on the table like a shroud. Setsuna discretely went back to contemplating the rolling surf. Haruka and Michiru exchanged a glance. They both smiled and shrugged. "Hey everybody!" came a familiar, cheery voice from far away. Ami silently blessed Usagi for her perfect timing. Usagi came jogging down the boardwalk, waving at them, carrying a folded-up newspaper in her other hand, smiling brightly. She ran with somewhat more grace than they were used to seeing back when they had all first met. A few more years of growth and a more serious devotion to her Senshi training had curbed much of her clumsiness. Right up to the point where she tripped on the step up to the restaurant patio, sending her sprawling across a table between two startled tourists. Rei let out a sigh. "That airhead." Ami smiled as she saw Usagi get back up and start bowing repeatedly, putting on her best smile, stammering her apologies. She was switching freely between Japanese and halting English. Ami recognized the couple as people she had spoken with once or twice. Too bad Usagi didn't know they only spoke German ... no wonder they looked so bewildered. Some of it may have been awe over the vision that had come falling down on their table. For Usagi truly was a vision. She had always been pretty, but in the past four years she had blossomed into a stunning beauty. Her golden hair was tied up into the same two round odangos and impossibly long pigtails she had worn since Ami met her, a style that would have looked ridiculous on most anybody else, but was somehow perfect for her. Her eyes were the colour of the sky. Altogether, it was easy to think that she was an angel slumming it down here on Earth ... tonight she would surely trade her shorts and checkered top for robes and wings to go back up and tell the gods all about her vacation. Usagi walked over and took her place at the table. "Boy, that was embarrassing." She hissed and pulled up the arm she had just laid down on the table, started rubbing at it. "Really hurt, too." "Well, you just need to watch where you're going," Rei said, exasperated. Usagi showed her tongue briefly. "I was busy trying to find you after you ran off." "*Who* ran off?" "I told you I was going for watermelon! Coudln't you smell it?" "Usagi, watermelon doesn't ... no, on second thought, you probably could smell it." "Well, your loss." "I haven't seen a paper since I got here," Ami said. "Mind if I take part of that?" "Oh, you can have the front page," Usagi said, unfolding it. "I just wanted to see the restaurant reviews, we need to decide where to eat tonight!" Rei had a look at the section of the paper that Usagi handed across to Ami. "Usagi, that's a Tokyo paper." "Yeah, I know." Usagi fished out the lifestyle section. "It's the one Mamo-chan gets. So?" "We're nowhere near Tokyo." "It was the only Japanese newspaper they had." Rei opened her mouth to say something, then just slumped down and sighed. "Never mind." She took the local news section and opened it up. They all spent the next few minutes variously reading the paper, showing off their shopping, eating ice cream or just chatting. Ami tried to find some news items to read that wouldn't get her depressed. "Hey, great timing!" Usagi said. "Suginae Minori wrote another Best Ten Hidden Gems article, and guess what? It's the best ten places to eat!" "Great," Rei said, peering over the top of her paper. "Any ones nearby?" "Well, the first one's in Shinjuku ...." Usagi's voice trailed off. "Finally clicked, huh?" Rei went back to reading. Usagi laughed nervously. "Well, I was thinking we should all go out to dinner the day we get back into town, what do you think?" There were a few words of agreement around the table. Usagi folded her paper so that just half of the full page article was visible. "Let's see ... boy, these places are scattered all over ... she must have been to every restaurant in Tokyo." Minako giggled. "Usagi, I bet that's a job you'd love to-" "NO WAY!" Everybody jumped. Usagi sounded like she had just spotted a UFO. "Mako-chan, this is *your* restaurant!" Makoto looked like she had just been struck by lightning. "Huh?" "Look, right here!" Usagi plopped the paper in front of Makoto, right on top of her empty ice cream dish. Very hesitantly, Makoto reached out and lifted the paper up a little. Minako and Hotaru had already run over and were leaning on each of Makoto's shoulders, straining to read. Makoto didn't seem to notice. After about a minute of silence, Makoto put the paper down. She still looked stunned. "Oh boy." "I take it you got a thumbs up?" Haruka asked. "Yeah." "Congratulations," Michiru said, smiling warmly. "It's well deserved." Her sentiments were echoed by everybody around the table. Makoto smiled, thanking everyone. She was looking a little less dazed now. "This is great!" Usagi enthused. "Everyone talks about Suginae's Best Ten lists, I've got a bunch of them in a scrapbook." "Yeah, she's very well known," Haruka said. She smiled at Makoto. "Your place is always pretty busy when we go there, but business should really pick up now." Makoto's eyes went wide. "Omigosh!" She stood up, looking panicked. "They're going to be *swamped* this weekend!" Minako squeezed her shoulder. "Relax, Mako-chan. You've got a great bunch of people working there, they can handle it." "But they're going to run out of everything. With me gone, the people who usually go out for stuff will be too busy in the kitchen. Oh jeez..." "Not to worry," Setsuna said, catching her attention. "I made contingency plans, in case any of us had to go back early. There's a seaplane that can take you as far as Osaka. If you really think you need to go back, you can be back in Tokyo in a day." Makoto looked unsure. "I don't know, that sounds like it would be expensive. You've done so much already, flying us out here ..." Setsuna dismissed her concerns with a wave. "They'll be leaving on their regular run later today. I know they've got at least a couple of seats free." She glanced at her watch. "Meet me at our hotel room in two hours and I'll take you to the pier." Makoto smiled, looking infinitely relieved. "I can't thank you enough. Um ... I should probably go call them, let them know when I'm coming back. I'm really sorry everyone, I hate cutting out early on you like this." "That's okay," Usagi said brightly. "It's so exciting! Now I can brag to everyone that I know one of the famous chefs of Tokyo!" Minako steered Makoto back toward her seat. "I think you have time to finish your lemonade first, right?" "Right." Makoto sat down, picked up her glass and tossed it back in one gulp. "Well, I'd better go make that phone call." She stood up again. "See you later everyone." There was a chorus of goodbyes as she walked back toward the hotel. Minako sighed. "Well, that was quick. I'm really happy for her, but it's such lousy timing. I was looking forward to us all going home together. Now Mako-chan's going to have to make the trip by herself." "Well, maybe not," Rei said. "Setsuna, I hate to impose but do you think they'd have room for another on the plane?" "Yes, of course," Setsuna said. "Oh, not you too," Usagi whined. "How come you have to go back?" "I think it's very sweet of you," Michiru said, smiling at Rei. "It will be so much nicer for Makoto, having the company." "Well, there's that, yes," Rei admitted. "But I have my own reason for going back." Ami caught the undercurrents in her tone. "Rei, is something wrong?" Rei made no further attempt to hide her seriousness. "I didn't want to say anything while Makoto was here, didn't want to burst her bubble." "Bad news?" Haruka asked cautiously, gesturing to the section of paper Rei had been reading. "Sort of. Last night there was some sort of accident at a shrine, somehow the whole building collapsed. I recognized the name, a friend of mine is a shrine maiden there." "Oh my God!" Usagi said, bringing her hand to her mouth. "Do you know if she's okay?" "The paper says nobody was hurt, so I assume so. But Miho really loved that place, she'll be very upset. I should really go back and see her." "Maybe you could put her to work at your shrine," Haruka quipped. She put her hands up defensively against the cold look Rei shot her. "I mean it would be very therapeutic for her, right?" Rei smiled, but the look in her eyes was no less dark. "You truly have the heart of a mercenary." She grabbed her shopping bag and stood up. "Well, I'd better get back and figure out how I'm going to pack all this stuff. Setsuna, I'm sorry again for imposing like this." Setsuna smiled. "Not at all. I'll see you in a little while." "Hang on a second," Usagi said. With practiced ease she wolfed down the last of her ice cream and washed it down with the last of her lemonade. "I'll come with you. I found this little confection stand on the way to the hotel. They've got a cake that's something like kasutera, it's simply to die for! Since you're leaving today, this is your last chance to try it." "You've already eaten," Rei protested, not having had any ice cream herself ... or any watermelon for that matter. "I'd feel silly, having you watch me eat." "What are you talking about?" Usagi said as they walked away. "I told you they're to die for, I'm having two." "Fine, as long as you don't go for a swim until an hour after you've eaten," Rei said sternly. "Rei, I'd *never* get to swim if ..." their voices faded out as they walked away. "The way that girl puts it away," Haruka said, "It's astonishing her body can still maintain positive buoyancy." "Speaking of which, I feel like going for a swim," Ami said. "Anyone care to join me?" "Oh, I don't know," Michiru said, sounding a little bored. "I'm getting a little tired of just frolicking on the seashore, it's not really proper swimming." Ami raised an eyebrow. "Well, actually I had something a little more interesting in mind." "Really?" Michiru took off her shades. "Do tell." Ami pointed out towards the ocean. "You see that island out there?" "Yes." "I was thinking of swimming there and back." Michiru looked a little more interested now. "I don't know, I thought it would be more interesting to go around it and swim to the island that's behind it, the one you can't see from here." Ami smiled sweetly. "Oh, you mean the one that's only one kilometre further?" "Dear me, is it only that far?" "I'm afraid so. But actually, if we swim around that one we can go to a sandbar that's on the other side of it. The sandbar disappears when the tide comes it, but if we start now and keep up a good pace, I'm sure we can make it." "My, you've done your homework." "I always do." "Well, that's beginning to sound interesting. I assume you have your bathing suit in your bag?" "Naturally," Ami said, indicating the sports bag next to her. "Good, then we can go straight to the changehouse." They both stood up. "I should think we'll be back by sunset." "Oh, I should think so," Ami agreed. "We'll be a little late for dinner, though." "Yes, we will. The rest of you had better make your own plans, we'll just pick something up later." There was another chorus of goodbyes, and the two of them headed off towards the changehouse. Everybody at the table watched them until they were out of sight. "They really take swimming seriously, don't they?" Hotaru finally said. "Somehow, they take it most seriously when they're both swimming in the same water," Setsuna noted. Minako took a drink of her lemonade. "Ami sure seems to be getting competitive lately. I wonder where she picks that up from?" "Oh brother," Haruka muttered. Minako frowned. "What was that?" "I said, from her mother." "Oh. Yeah, I guess you really need to be the A type personality to make it as a doctor." "I forgot to mention," Setsuna said, looking at Minako. "I saw your concert on television last week, you were very good." Minako beamed. "Thanks. It wasn't exactly my concert, there were a dozen other singers on the program." "But I thought you were a cut above the rest." "That's nice of you to say. I didn't think techno-pop was your thing." "She was watching with me," Hotaru explained. "I was taping it. A lot of my favourite singers were on that program." She smiled. "I mean you too. I'm your number one fan." Minako winked. "Aww, that's what they all say." She suddenly looked around and beckoned Hotaru to come closer. "I'm not really supposed to be telling you this," she said, her voice low, "but, well ..." she leaned even closer, murmured in Hotaru's ear. Hotaru gasped and shot back upright. "He's *here*? I don't believe it! He's so dreamy, I have all his CDs, I've got that big poster of him on my wall!" Minako was grinning from ear to ear now, very pleased with herself. "So how would you like to go meet him?" Hotaru's eyes went wide. "You mean it?" "Uh huh. I just happen to have an open invitation to a private party he's holding not far from here right this very minute. Want to head over there?" "I don't know, do you think it would be okay?" Hotaru glanced furtively at her guardian. "You two go ahead," Setsuna said. She looked at Minako. "Try not to keep her up too late, okay?" Hotaru stood, looking both thrilled and terrified. "Gee, do I look okay? Maybe I should go change." "You look fine," Minako said, putting her arm around Hotaru and leading her away. "Just leave everything to Minako onesama, we'll have a great time!" Setsuna glanced at her watch. "Well, we were all together for approximately five minutes. I think that's a new record." Haruka chuckled. She nodded towards the two walking away. "You really think that's okay?" "I'm pretty sure I know who they're going to see, you can't walk into Hotaru's room without it being obvious who her latest heartthrob is. He's got a squeaky clean reputation, which is pretty much mandatory for an idol singer." "Hotaru seems to go through idols as fast as she goes through boyfriends." Setsuna smiled. "I haven't asked her, but it looks as if there's a young man she's quite serious about now. They don't seem to go out all that often, but she gets at least weekly letters from him. Three or four pages, from the thickness of the envelope." "And her letters?" "She posts them herself." "Yes, that does sound serious. Michiru will be pleased, she's been fretting about how all Hotaru's boyfriends have been semi-literate jocks. So, anything else we've been missing out on?" "Not much you haven't heard already. I think Rei's grandfather is doing rather more poorly than either of them is willing to admit. He'll probably spend the winter down south, like he did last year. I suspect he only has a few years left at best." Haruka's expression darkened. "That's going to be really hard on Rei, when he goes. For all their fighting, we all know she adores him. I guess that would pretty much set her future, I couldn't see her doing otherwise. Unless ... ?" "Someone marrying into the family?" Setsuna quipped. "No change there." Haruka sighed. "Status quo, huh? Thought as much." "Well, be that as it may, there's another relationship that's developing nicely." "Our little genius?" "Correct." Haruka smiled broadly. "Well, what do you know. Sounds like she's coming out of her shell with a vengeance. Didn't I say that year in Germany would do her good?" "Did you say that?" "I very definitely said that." "Well, then I suppose you must have been right. Anyway, I'm just happy to see that she's lost her millennial fever." "What, no more sinister experiments freezing poor little animals in crystal?" "No, she's already done about as much as she can with that. And her reading material has improved, no more long turgid analyses of the nature of evil." "Thank goodness. Half those books would end up in our house, it was pretty grim stuff. After reading some of that, you start to wonder how our species made it this far." Setsuna just nodded agreement. They both leaned back and relaxed, watching the ocean for a while. "So do you think it's all going to fall apart?" Haruka asked. Setsuna didn't look to be at all surprised by the sudden question. "I'd say there's slightly better than an even chance," she said as if they were discussing stock options. "Think we ought to be making plans?" "I think we're in about as good a position as we can be. We're all together," she smiled, "that is when you two aren't galavanting all over the world. We're staying sharp and focused, honing our powers as best we can. Beyond that, I'm reluctant to have us do more." "Reluctant?" Setsuna wore that perfect poker face again. "I want you all to be able to enjoy this peace, however short or long it ends up lasting." Haruka smiled. "Eat, drink and be merry?" "And keep your powder dry, just in case." "Good advice." "Anyway, you haven't told me anything about your own plans. Is Michiru at least going to do some concerts in town before you head back to Europe?" "Yeah, she's already got three nights lined up. Naturally, I've got the advance tickets sitting at home." "Always an incentive for us all to get together again." "Yeah." A knowing smile spread across Setsuna's face. "Haruka, you're a lot like Ami, you answer in monosyllables when you've got something on your mind." Haruka chuckled. But there was still a hint of seriousness in her face. It was a moment before she answered. "It may be nothing. I'm only mentioning it because we always said we would tell you, whenever Michiru had a vision." Setsuna leaned forward onto the table, looking at Haruka expectantly. "It was only once. Two days ago, when she was looking in the talisman mirror, like she does every morning. She said it was very brief, but quite clear. A picture of the Crystal Palace, exactly the way you described it to us." Setsuna's face was expressionless. "Nothing more?" "No. The palace against a black background. That's all." Setsuna pondered that for a moment. "Why now?" she asked softly. She didn't sound alarmed, just puzzled. Haruka had a slight frown on her face. "I'm always afraid to ask you anything when you look like that. You've tried to explain it to me so many times. How you know what's to come but not how we get there. How the Pluto who helped raise Chibi-usa is both your past and your future. I still don't get it." Setsuna's expression darkened. "Do you want to know something, Uranus?" She leaned forward. Her red eyes burned like coals. "I don't get it either." She leaned back and laughed softly. "I'm sorry Haruka, have I disillusioned you?" Haruka shook her head slowly, her horrified expression changing to one of profound annoyance. "No, you just scared the hell out of me, that's all." "Well, quite honestly, I don't know what the vision might mean. I think I'll ask Mars to do a reading when we get back, see if she can come up with anything. If not, then I'll just make a note in the journal and we'll wait and see." Setsuna's tone was casual, with just enough hint of finality to indicate there wasn't much point talking any further on it. "Fair enough. Well, since everybody's abandoned us I guess we'll have to keep ourselves amused. Feel like a swim?" "I'll pass thank you, I'm starting to feel a bit waterlogged. Besides, I have to meet Rei and Makoto in a little while. In fact, I should call and arrange their seats. Once I've done that, maybe we can go shopping for a while." "If you like." "Oh dear, does it sound that boring?" "No, not that. I was just so looking forward to seeing you in a wet bathing suit." "Baka." End Chapter 2 Subject: [Fanfic: SM: Secrets, ch. 3] Date: Thu, 01 Jan 1998 10:50:51 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca To: Chris Davies , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- Secrets Chapter 3 - The Palace Shoji was sitting on the stone floor staring at the glowing Seed Crystal when he felt a familiar presence approach the cave. "Hi Akechi." He heard the man's footsteps approach from behind. Akechi came and stood next to where Shoji sat cross-legged in the middle of the cave floor. Shoji looked up at him. Akechi was a year younger than him, but with his receding hairline and long, severe face he somehow looked older. Akechi wore his permanent frown like a wound. He looked even more nervous than usual. He wore the same casual but neatly pressed open collar shirt and slacks that Shoji always saw him in. Shoji noted he was putting on a bit of weight. Maybe he was getting lazy about how he went about his hunting. "Isn't that cold?" Akechi asked, his attempt at small talk. "I've gotten used to it. One hot bath and my ass warms up just fine." "Even after two hours?" Shoji sighed. "I suppose Yui-chan sent you." Akechi didn't say anything. He didn't need to. Shoji went back to contemplating the Seed Crystal. The cave was empty for the first time in the two weeks since the change in the telepathic image. Naturally, it had caused quite a stir among the Ancients. So much so that his and Yui's little slip-up had been virtually forgotten. Shoji had finally been able to come here to get some peace and quiet while he studied the crystal. "It can't look any different than it did last week," Akechi said. "It doesn't," Shoji agreed. "Then what's so interesting about it?" Akechi hadn't been one of the Ancients mesmerized by the changes in the Crystal. He rarely got excited about anything other than his hunting. "I've just been thinking of how it got this way." He looked up at Akechi again. "Bringing just one Soul Icon in here made the Crystal's vision this much clearer." Akechi gave him a look that said "so what?" He knew what Shoji meant of course, by now everyone knew they were calling Yui's prize a Soul Icon. It was still blazing brightly in the little crystal resting up on the wall behind them. Shoji continued. "What if we brought in another? Or two more? Or three? Wouldn't the vision get even clearer?" Akechi shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. But it's pretty clear right now. What more would you expect to see?" "I want to know the meaning behind it. What is this palace, where is it? Is it going to exist in the future? When? What's special about it?" Akechi thought about that for a second. "The Matriarch is still mad about what you did. I don't think she'd let you go out and get any more of those things. It's too dangerous." Shoji reached into a pocket of his open denim jacket and took out a little dark crystal. "Who said anything about telling the Matriarch?" Akechi's frown deepened. He obviously knew what it was. "You're serious. You really want to do this." "Of course. How else are we going to find out more, by sitting in here and staring at the same damned thing day in and day out? Tried that, it just gets you a sore ass." "But the Matriarch is right, it's too dangerous. What if you get caught by outsiders?" "We won't. Last time we were caught by surprise, we didn't know what would happen. We just tried something and that poppled out." He gestured back towards the crystal holding the Soul Icon. "With just a little planning, it will be a cinch. Lots easier than any hunting you ever did." Akechi's eyes darted furtively over towards the cave entrance and back again. He looked annoyed with Shoji. He was nervous about any mention of his hunting, especially in a place where they might be overheard. If other Ancients found out what Shoji and Yui knew, he would be in severe trouble. Very severe trouble. "The Matriarch will find out eventually," Akechi said. The wild look flashed in his eyes, the look he usually did such a good job of hiding. Shoji knew that look from childhood, had learned to expect it whenever Akechi anticipated danger ... or anticipated the thrill of the hunt. He had guessed where Shoji was going to take this. Shoji grinned. "By the time the Matriarch finds out, the results will already speak for themselves. They've been trying to figure out the Crystal for centuries, longer if you believe all the stories. We may be able to crack this, find out what it's all about once and for all. If we can do that, nobody will give a damn about a few shrines, we'll be the biggest heroes since the First Ancestor." "So who wants to be a hero?" "You're missing the point." Shoji stood up and stretched, getting the kink out of his back. "If we can pull this off, who do you think is going to be the next Matriarch?" That took Akechi off guard. The wild look flashed in his eyes again, as he contemplated the possibility of a Matriarch who knew his secrets. Then he looked calmer, more thoughtful. Shoji could guess what he was thinking: Yui, a Matriarch who would never raise a hand against him. It couldn't happen immediately, by tradition she had to have at least one child first. But that was easily taken care of, and she already had powers greater than most Ancients twice her age. No, it was not inconceivable. "So what do you say, are you in?" Akechi nodded slowly. "I'm in." Shoji clapped him on the shoulder. "Great. Time to call in the star of the show." He closed his eyes, cast his mind out, looked for one aura among the many. It was the one more familiar to him now than his own mother's, he found it easily. **Yui, can you hear me?** Without even an acknowledgement, Yui 'ported in right next to them. They were both used to her doing that. That is, normally. Right now, they both stared at her in wide-eyed shock. Yui grinned, looking very pleased with herself. **Hi Senpai.** **Yui ... since when could you do this?** **I tried for the first time last week. I was still feeling pumped from getting that Soul Icon, I really felt like I could do it. It was hard the first time, but now it's pretty easy. Surprised?** **Yeah, you could say that.** As far as Shoji knew, no Ancient had ever been able to teleport directly into the Seed Crystal cave. Everybody just assumed that it was impossible. Yui gave their friend a little wave. **Hi Akechi, how's it going?** **Not bad.** He actually smiled a bit. Yui was one of the few people who could make him do that. Probably because most Ancients just tried to avoid him. He was even more isolated than Shoji and Yui, just short of being outcast like the black sheep. And of course, he and she were fellow hunters, though of quite a different nature. It still surprised Shoji, how little it bothered Yui knowing about it. Of course, she thought of his victims as animals, something Shoji hadn't exactly been discouraging. **Akechi and I have just been talking,** Shoji said. **How would you like to go get another Soul Icon?** Yui frowned. **You mean ... from another shrine?** **Yeah. We want to bring another one in here, we figure two are better than one.** He took the dark crystal out of his pocket again, tossed it up and caught it. The meaning of this sunk in. **Yeah, that would be pretty cool. Won't we get in trouble, though?** **Not if we do it right. Just like you figured, the first one made this place even better, the precognitives are in throes of ecstasy. The only reason they're not here with the crystal right now is they're all bloody morning people. If we get another one, we might make it better still. We may even be able to figure out what this vision really means. We do that, and even the Matriarch will have to be nice to us.** That struck a chord with Yui. Shoji knew she still felt bitter about how Himiko had treated her. She would jump at any chance to count coup on the old witch ... what better way than to crack the mystery of the Crystal that had puzzled the Ancients since the First Ancestor had given it to them. Yui nodded. **Okay, I'd like to try it.** Shoji gave her a hug. **That's my girl.** He glanced over at Akechi and smiled. Akechi looked a little disappointed, perhaps he had been expecting Yui to say she didn't want to do this. Yui stepped back, looked up at him. **What should we do first?** **We've got to be careful,** Akechi interrupted. **There are all sorts of things that could go wrong, we have to plan it all out.** **Of course,** Shoji replied. **Yui being able to teleport right in here is going to make bringing Soul Icons here a lot easier, that solves the worst problem right there. As for the shrines, there are things we can do to minimize the risk. Around sunset is probably the best time to hit, it's after closing time but it's still light enough that the pyrotechnics are less likely to attract attention.** **We've got to pick the right one, too.** Yui said. **There are only certain ones that really have a lifeforce.** **We really shouldn't be talking about this here,** Akechi reminded him. Actually, this was probably one of the best places. As long as nobody else was actually in the cave, it was very unlikely anybody would be eavesdropping on them. But Akechi was nervous enough as it was, might as well keep him happy. **Yui, did you 'port from our room in the house?** **Yes.** **Then 'port go back there and walk over to the back garden, we'll meet you there. I don't want anybody else knowing you can teleport into here, we need to be careful about that.** He bent down and kissed her. **Sounds good?** **Sounds good!** She waved and vanished. She was suddenly looking more lively again, no doubt anticipating what was to come. She had been pouting about how much time he had been spending in here by himself. But that stage of the game was over now, time for action. "Not to worry," he said to Akechi as they made their way out of the cave. "This'll be a piece of cake, really." ***** Their morning meditation done, Thetan and his fellow monks filed into the temple's communal dining hall for their first meal of the day. It was the same modest breakfast they had every single day, and as usual it was eaten in silence. This gave Thetan time to think. Yesterday he had met with Jeneth and K'Theelm for the first time in two months. It had been a very pleasant day, they had taken lunch together then walked through a nearby park, talking and catching up on what they had been doing. Jeneth was still consumed with her healing. She had recently found a young intern whom she was positive had latent psychic healing abilities. She was seriously contemplating revealing her own powers to him, offering to be his tutor, to help awaken his powers. It was a hard decision to make. She felt the young man could be trusted. But if he reacted badly to the revelation that there was a whole world he was unaware of, he could expose her, put them all in danger. Thetan had told her the decision was hers to make. Secretly, he hoped that she decided to confide in the young man, it was clear how much she wanted to. K'Theelm had become more fascinated with the Earthmen's information technology. Their software was a realm of pure logic that he could lose himself in, apply his Engineer's mind to without regard for the primitive hardware that supported it. He had found that his own very unique perspective had allowed him to devise ways of using the technology that the Earthmen had not yet contemplated. Already, programs that he had anonymously posted on their communications network had become very popular, had inspired software engineers across the globe to explore new directions, new possibilities. It looked like he had found an area where he could make a contribution without trying to introduce radical new technology. Yes, it appeared as if they had all well and truly gone native. Jeneth and K'Theelm were still occupying the same apartment they had acquired soon after they had infiltrated the local population. But they probably saw each other not much more than Thetan saw them, what with Jeneth spending all her time at one or another hospital. It was astonishing how quickly this world had seduced them all into their own separate lives. Thetan's reverie was broken by the call to prayer. He offered thanks to the Buddha for the good fortune of himself and his friends, offered it with no less sincerity than he had offered it to the divine spirit worshipped by the order on his own doomed planet so far away. His newly adopted brothers connected with the divine spirit in ways that were still new and strange to him, but no less comforting or fulfilling. Thetan soon went to continue the work he had been doing for several days now. It was a major temple renovation that required a great deal of heavy lifting. His size, strength and stamina had made him well suited to the work. And though raised and trained as a warrior, in truth he loved nothing more than the act of building and fixing. Particularly building places where people would live, and most particularly houses of worship. "Brother Russell." Thetan looked up from where he was kneeling, fitting a stone into the new walkway he was constructing. He recognized the monk who had addressed him, a young man who had just entered the temple this year. "Good day, brother." The young monk bowed. "Forgive the intrusion, I have a message from his grace. He would like you to present yourself in his room at ten o'clock." "I understand. Thank you." The man bowed and went on his way. It was nearly an hour before the appointed time, so Thetan got some more work done before going to wash up in preparation for meeting the head priest. Thetan had few direct dealings with the head of the temple, he wondered what this might be about. When he walked up to the entrance to the priest's room, he found another of his brothers also approaching. The sliding door was open, so they both kneeled on the bamboo mat before it and announced themselves. >From within, they heard the priest give them permission to enter. They walked in to find that three other monks were already seated within. They took their place beside them and waited. About a minute later, one more arrived. The priest asked him to close the door. Apparently, all who were bidden here had now arrived. "Thank you all for coming," the old priest said. He was sitting on a cushion behind his low, lacquered table. His normally cheerful face was grim. "Earlier this morning I was brought rather grave news. One of our neighbouring temples has become the scene of an accident." He named the temple. It was one Thetan knew well, had visited several times. "The report I was given was rather incredible. For no reason that anybody can explain, the main temple building collapsed to the ground some time last night. Fortunately, nobody was inside, so nobody was hurt. I have spoken with my counterpart at the temple, he is at a loss to explain what has happened. There is no reason to believe it was anything other than a simple accident, however strange, but for reasons unknown to me the police have become involved. Apparently they wish to examine the ruins of the building without delay. I have offered our brothers at the temple whatever assistance we can give, which they have graciously accepted. I have made arrangements for transportation to take you to the temple grounds. Once there, you will present yourselves to my counterpart there. Most likely, he will put you to work assisting in clearing out the ruins of the building. It is an old temple with many artifacts of great value, we wish to ensure that these artifacts are treated with proper care and respect. Hence, our desire to have as much of the work as possible performed by our own brothers. You will be staying at the temple there as long as you are needed, apparently the living quarters were undamaged and there is extra space for you." His expression became stern. "I expect you all to conduct yourselves properly. It is not your place to speculate on what might have happened, only to render assistance. Especially in the presence of those outside the temple, idle speculation will not be tolerated. If in performing your work you find anything you feel might shed some light on this event, bring it to your appointed superior and to nobody else. We will decide what needs to be brought to the attention of the police." He dismissed them. They went to gather what few belongings they needed and went to wait in front of the temple grounds. The van which had been sent for soon arrived, and took them to the temple. The first thing Thetan noticed upon arriving was that there were more police here than one would expect to be supervising the scene of a simple accident. They had two cars parked in front of the barricade they had set across the front gate. There were officers standing at intervals to the left and right, and presumably around the perimeter of the grounds. The senior of the monks in their group presented themselves to the officers at the gate. It took several minutes to confirm that these were the people whom they had been told to expect. They were admitted onto the grounds, and were escorted up the stone stairway to the temple grounds proper. As they topped the stairs and approached the ruins, two things became apparent to Thetan. First, the building had not simply collapsed. It had been practically reduced to kindling. Thetan could see no piece of wood bigger than his arm. Even the large support beams had been shattered this way. He would have thought only a violent explosion could have done this. Except there was no indication of a blast. All the pieces had collapsed straight down. It was like a great pair of hands had scooped up the building, crushed it and sprinkled the debris back down. The earth and gravel around it looked like it had been churned by a great plough being drawn over it at random. It was no wonder they were all so perplexed, no physical phenomenon by itself could have done something like this. Second, the power he had felt emanating from this place on his previous visits was now utterly gone. To Thetan, this loss was far more devastating, far more disturbing than the impossibly shattered building lying in ruins in front of him. Somehow, the soul of this holy place had been ripped out of it. Thetan suppressed a shudder. Only a being of immense power and malevolence could have done such a thing. They presented themselves to the head priest, and were soon put to work. Thetan applied himself single-mindedly to the task of clearing the rubble as delicately as he could, leaving the task of retrieving precious artifacts to others. There was little to retrieve. About all they came across was pieces of statues or ornaments. Small pieces. Some he recognized as being from artifacts he had seen, artifacts that had glowed with power to his aura vision. Whatever had shattered them had drained them of all life, left them cold and inert as stones. By the time the first day's work was done, Thetan had resolved to bring Jeneth and K'Theelm to this place. They could each bring unique sorts of vision that might shed light on what had happened here. Jeneth's pacifist stance notwithstanding, an abomination of this magnitude could not be ignored, could not go unpunished. ***** "Kino-san, these are the last of them," the girl said as she hung the utensils on their racks over the long, gleaming stainless steel kitchen counter. "Oh, bless you," Makoto said, smiling warmly. She put the mop and pail she had been using back in their place. She took a deep breath and let it out with a low groan. "Lord, what a day. Listen, I'm just about done too. Why don't you take off, I'll close up." "Are you sure?" "Yes, that's an order. Now off with you, scoot." She gave her new waitress a playful pat on the back. "Thank you, Kino-san." The girl walked to the doorway, turned and gave a quick bow. Her smile was weary but friendly. "I'll see you tomorrow." "'Night." Makoto smiled as she watched the young woman leave. She had been quite a find. Pretty, bright, cheerful and energetic, always willing to lend a hand. Already very popular with the staff and customers. Makoto felt bad about the long hours she was making the girl work, making them all work. But none of them seemed to mind. Minako was right, she had a great bunch of people here. She finished putting away a few more things, turned out the kitchen lights and walked into the restaurant. There were just a few lights on, but she could see that the others hand finished cleaning up. All the chairs were up on the tables. All but one. That was the 'collapse chair', a courtesy to whoever was the last one out. More often that not, it was her. So she decided to collapse. *It's a good kind of tired* Makoto tried to convince herself as she slumped down in the chair. Her feet throbbed, she had hardly been off them for about sixteen hours straight. Which in the past couple of weeks had been a fairly typical day. She hadn't even found time to send Suginae a thank you note for the positive review that had suddenly tripled her business. She had been rather anxious these past few months. The restaurant she had sunk the entirety of her deceased parents' trust fund into had just barely been breaking even. But now, tables were booked at her place for the next two weeks. Practically overnight, she had the success she had dreamed for. "Be careful what you wish for," she murmured to herself. She heard the chimes at the front door. She made a mental note to tell everyone to have that door locked as soon as the last customer was out. Lately people had been walking in at all hours of the morning expecting to get served. "I'm sorry, but we're closed," she called out, too tired to even get up and greet the person. "Well, I should think so," came a familiar voice. Ami appeared through the entryway from the lobby. "You should have been closed nearly two hours ago." "Hi Ami. Let me get you a chair." "Oh, don't get up ..." Ami said, signalling her to sit back down as she walked over. "It's okay," Makoto said, flipping over another chair and laying it down beside hers. "Your showing up reminded me I could do with a drink, I suppose you could do with one too." Ami smiled. "I wouldn't say no." "The usual?" "Yes, thank you." Makoto went to open up the liquor cabinet and mixed their drinks. She came back to see Ami waiting patiently for her. "So how long have you been up?" "I did two straight shifts today, plus some extra." She took a good swallow of her drink. "Mmm, that's good. Twenty hours and counting." "Ouch, that's even longer than me." Makoto noticed that Ami hadn't even bothered changing before leaving the hospital. She still wore her white coat. She had at least changed into running shoes. "So this was your first double shift?" "Mmm Hmmm." Ami relaxed, cradling her drink. "Did you have to do anything gross?" Ami laughed. "No, nothing worse than taking vital signs and blood samples. It'll be a while before I'm doing much more than that." "So what brought you 'round here?" "Well, somehow I didn't think I'd be getting any sleep soon. Sure I'm exhausted, but I was really nervous about today so I'm still a bit jittery. I thought you might still be here cleaning up." "Good guess," Makoto said. "It wasn't as bad as yesterday, we actually got the last of our guests out of here less than an hour before our posted closing time." "So how are you holding up?" "Okay I guess. That new waitress is turning out very well, and I hired a new cook this week. Once he's up to speed, I may actually start using my apartment for something other than sleeping." Ami smiled impishly. "And maybe start coming to training sessions again, too." Makoto groaned. "Don't remind me, I missed the last three straight. Next one I show up at, Uranus will really have it in for me." "Well, you'd better make it soon, otherwise you'll be so out of shape she'll have you on the ground in nothing flat." Makoto smirked. "Well, if that's what she thinks, I'll make a point of doing at least one session before they go back to Europe again. So who is she taking her frustration out on in my absence, not you I hope?" "Nobody in particular. Actually, I missed the last session myself." Makoto blinked. "Ami, you *never* miss a training session." "Ryou invited me for a weekend trip to Nikko. I made the mistake of telling Usagi, she insisted that I go." "A trip to Nikko, huh? Sounds romantic." Ami smiled. "It was very nice." She took another swallow from her drink. "We managed to get lost in the mountains, the maps we had were out of date. We almost ended up spending the night out there." "That wouldn't have been so bad." "I like being close to nature, but not that close. Give me a nice warm bed, any day." "Uh-huh." Ami blinked. "What?" "Nothing." Ami shrugged. She tossed back the rest of her drink. She sure went through that in a hurry, Makoto thought. "Ami, if I mix you another of those, will you be able to make it home without passing out first?" Ami smiled, put her glass on the table. "I'll pass thanks. Sorry if I'm a bit distracted." "Something in particular on your mind?" Ami nodded. Her eyes were averted. Her expression was difficult to read. Sort of anxious and uncertain, but softened by a hint of a smile. She sat like that for a moment before she spoke. "He's asked me to marry him." Makoto took in a sharp breath that was almost a gasp. In an instant her feeling of elation was cut through by the reality of what Ami had said, or rather had not said. The meaning of her enigmatic expression was clearer now. "You haven't given him your answer," she said carefully. She did not need to frame it as a question. "He wouldn't let me give an answer. He said there were too many things to think about. I mean, because of who I am. And because of all I know about what's to come. He said I should take some time to think about this." Makoto shook her head slowly. "I'm not sure I understand. Does he think you're unsure about your feelings?" Ami smiled and shook her head. "It's not that. My feelings are the one thing I'm sure about, and he knows that. I'd marry him in a heartbeat." "But ... ?" "We've talked about this before Makoto, have you forgotten?" "No, I haven't forgotten. So we're Sailor Senshi, that makes us different. What's that got to do with your getting married?" Ami sighed. "Like I said, we've talked about it. I've been turning it around in my head so often I can list the points in my sleep. Our lifespans are so much longer, we may outlive by centuries any mate we take. We put ourselves in the paths of malevolent beings whose nature and powers we barely understand, so anybody close to us could very well be exposed to that, be put in danger. We have all pledged ourselves body and soul to the Princess, so we can never truly pledge ourselves to another, not even in marriage. We have to lead double lives, anyone close to us who knows our secret would have to live a lie, just like we do. If our true natures and identities are ever revealed to the world, our lives will no longer be our own, no matter how much we would like them to be." Ami gave a little lopsided smile. "You know, the usual." Yes, Makoto had heard all this before. "Ami, do you remember what we concluded each time we talked about this?" "Yes, I remember. We shouldn't let who we are get in the way of our happiness. That's what *you* concluded, as I recall." "I don't remember your ever disagreeing with that." "No, I never did disagree," Ami admitted. "But now, when I'm actually faced with this decision, somehow it's not that simple." "Ami, I can't believe that Ryou hasn't thought of all this himself. If I know you two, you've already talked about all this, in excruciating detail." Ami smiled. "Yes, it was a long talk." "So you must know whether Ryou has his eyes open." "He does. He knows what he might be getting into, being married to a Sailor Senshi." "If he can accept that, why can't you?" "I'm just not sure it would be fair. I've already pledged myself to another." Makoto tried to reign in her growing feeling of frustration. She wasn't doing a very good job. "Ami, are you saying none of us are entitled to take husbands?" Ami's eyes went wide. "No, of course not! Makoto, that's not fair, this is a personal decision." Makoto reached over and clasped Ami's hand. "I'm sorry Ami. You're right, that wasn't fair. I'm just trying to understand why this is so hard for you. To me, if your feelings are clear then the answer is obvious." Ami sighed. "It's such a big decision, maybe I'm just thinking up reasons to avoid it." "You know what Usagi would say if you asked her." "Oh yes. She'd be mad at me for even hesitating." "I know how she feels." Ami smiled shyly. "Do you think I'm being silly?" "No. The only problem I see is you're thinking too much about this, instead of just following your heart." Ami's expression became slightly wistful, as if she had suddenly been reminded of some happy memory long buried. "You're not the first person to tell me that." They sat like that for a few moments. Then something else occurred to Makoto. She let go of Ami's hand and looked at her intently. That caught Ami's attention. "What?" "Ami, you weren't serious about that Valkyrie business, were you?" It took a moment for Ami to figure out what Makoto was talking about. "Uh ... no, like I said then, I was just thinking aloud." She was becoming increasingly uncomfortable. "That's got nothing to do with it. I mean ... well, it's not really a consideration. In fact, it's sort of a moot point, as it were. That is-" Makoto laughed cheerfully. She put her hands up. "Okay okay, you don't have to spell it out, I get the picture." Ami's face was a lot redder than just the alcohol would account for. She averted her eyes and tried to smile. "This really is silly. I'm supposed to become a doctor and here I am getting all bent out of shape over a perfectly normal biological function." When she caught Ami's eye again, Makoto winked. "Silly girl." "Yes, I know." They sat in companionable silence for a little while. Makoto debated the wisdom of inquiring further, decided that she should ask. She chose her words carefully. "Ami, you don't have to answer if you don't want to, but is your relationship with Minako one of the things you've been thinking about?" To Makoto's surprise, Ami did not seem at all put off by the question. "No, Ryou is aware of what Minako and I mean to each other, it's not a problem. Strictly speaking, Minako and I haven't been lovers for a couple of years now. Does that surprise you?" Makoto felt bad about her surprise being so obvious. "Yeah, sort of. I had kind of assumed just the opposite." "Why?" "It just seems like in the past couple of years you two have been ... I don't know, more affectionate towards each other." Ami looked thoughtful for a moment. "I guess I can see why you would think that. It was almost exactly two years ago that Minako and I had a long talk and decided to end our relationship. Part of it was that her singing career was taking off and we would be apart a lot anyway. And of course I would be going to Germany soon. Mostly it just seemed the right time. Don't get me wrong, I still think she's very beautiful and I love her dearly. We figured out that what we both really liked was just to be close. I mean, physically. The two times we became lovers, it was just after we had nearly gotten killed ... once by the Death Busters, once by Galaxia. I guess it was our way of expressing our joy at just being alive." Ami smiled. "And of course, hormones had something to do with it. I guess before we came to this decision, we were both a little self conscious about public displays of affection." "You needn't have been," Makoto said gently. "We all know how you two feel about each other, and we're all happy for you." "I know, Mako-chan. We never doubted that." "And you know what else? When you weren't around we've all been taking bets as to when Ryou would pop the question." Ami's eyebrows went up. "Really?" "Really." "Then you were way ahead of me. He took me completely by surprise when he proposed. I didn't see it coming at all. Maybe love is blind after all." "It's going to be hard for him you know, this waiting." Ami sighed. "I know. I feel awful, leaving him hanging like this. I want this so badly, Mako-chan, but I have to make sure I'm doing the right thing. I have to be sure this is best for him as well as me." "Are you sure that's all there is to it?" Ami's eyes narrowed. "You sound like you think there's something more." "Not exactly something more, more like something less." Ami shook her head. "I don't understand." "I just can't help feeling your reasons for hesitating are a lot simpler, nothing to do with being Sailor Mercury at all. If you marry Ryou, chances are you'll be starting a family sometime soon." Ami cast her eyes downward. She nodded. "Yes, I have been thinking about that," she said slowly. She looked back at Makoto. Her smile hinted at something like gratitude, or at least acknowledgement. "I'd have some really tough choices to make." Makoto just nodded. She didn't need to say more. Ami's mother had tried being a doctor, a wife and a mother all at once. She had only been really successful at the first of those, Ami had mostly had to raise herself. She'd done a good job, and felt no resentment, but Makoto knew that her relationship with her mother could at best be described as cordial. It was natural for Ami to fear treading the same path. "I'll probably end up spilling my guts to all of you before I've made up my mind," Ami mused. "I imagine I'll get much the same answer from everyone else too." "And you know why, right?" Ami gave her head a quick shake. "I don't' follow you." "As far as we know, you're the only one of us who's caught the bouquet at a wedding. You're holding us all back, so you'd better decide to fish or cut bait." After two heartbeats they both started laughing hysterically. Ami nearly tipped her chair over. ***** "Shoji-onisan, can I go first?" "Don't you remember what I said?" Shoji said to the little boy. Then to everyone, "My rules are, first time 'round we go youngest to oldest." He clapped twice. "Come on people, line up. Time's 'a wasting." The gaggle of children around him went very noisily about the business of arranging themselves as he had ordered. When they were done, he had a ragged line of boys and girls more or less from the smallest to the biggest. It didn't look like anybody was cheating, not that anyone else would have let them get away with it. "Okay, listen up," Shoji said, and they quieted down. He pointed out across the field to a huge rock embedded in ground about fifty meters out, just in front of a short, rocky cliff that gouged into a little hill. In contrast to the lush grass in other parts of the field, the ground between where they were standing and the cliff was all bare sandy soil, crushed rock and stones. On top of the huge rock was a smaller one, squarish and a meter high, looking almost like a rough tombstone. It was framed by the blackened, shattered rock of the cliff face. That cliff would be getting some more punishment pretty soon. "That is your target. This time, you get one shot each. Don't try anything fancy, just try and hit it. I'll tell you if it's a hit or not, so no arguing. If you hit, you go over there. If you miss, you go over there. Any questions? No?" He drew a line in the dirt with the big stick he was carrying. "Okay, first one behind the line and give it your best shot." The boy who stepped up to the line was perhaps eight years old. He was best at kinetites, as Shoji recalled. Sure enough, the boy cupped his hands before him, and a little ball of blue-white plasma began to form between them. His little brow knitted with his concentration. When the bright kinetite grew to its full size, he crouched down and brought his hands down to his right side, his gaze now shifted to his target. Shoji smiled at the boy's stance. Looked like somebody had been watching a bit too much Dragonball. The boy shouted and threw his arms straight out before him. The kinetite shot out of his hands, now a dazzling beam streaking out across the field. It missed the rock by a wide margin and detonated against the cliff, kicking up a cloud of dust and sending a little stream of rocks and gravel tumbling down to the ground. "Miss," Shoji declared, bringing a stop to the muttering that had started up among the children. "Good try, though. Plenty of power, but kept under firm control, that's good. Try less movement next time. Don't try to use your body as a source of your power, just use it to focus. The power comes from your mind, your body just directs it, that's all. Watch." Shoji stepped to the line and cupped his hands before him. The kinetite appeared between them, glowing brightly. His hands twitched forward and the little ball of energy streaked out across the field. It hit the rock dead centre, flashing against the surface but doing no apparent damage. Shoji hadn't put much power into it. He turned to face the line of children, putting up his hand to silence their exclamations of surprise and admiration. "You see? Not much movement. Your body can help you focus, but don't become dependent on that, use your mind. Okay, next." Shoji stepped aside and a little girl took his place, not much older than the boy. As Shoji expected, she brought up one hand and a ball of orange-red flame materialized above it. Fireball. A girl after my own heart, Shoji mused. Her approach was as different as her weapon. With no apparent movement, she sent the fireball floating slowly out towards the target. It gained speed gradually, and bobbed this way and that as she adjusted its course. It flared and sputtered as her hold over it slipped away. By the time it flared against the stone and died, it was barely visible. "Hit ... " Shoji said, and the girl grinned. "But just barely." Her face fell. "You tried to keep conscious control of it too far out. When it's twice as far out, how much harder is it to control?" The girl's eyes went blank for a moment as she did the required mental arithmetic. "It's four times harder." "And when it's three times further out?" She used her fingers this time, that took a little longer. "Nine times harder." "Very good. Remember, when you create an artifact, a fireball or anything else, you put some of your own life energy into it. It's almost like a living thing itself, so it can hold itself together for a little while, even after you stop concentrating on it. Take advantage of that. Once you've sent it on its way and it's on target, just let go of it and let it get there by itself. Okay, next." As they worked their way to the older children, the attacks became more powerful, and the ratio of hits went up a bit. The last one, a boy of thirteen, actually took a chunk out of the rock and nearly tipped it over with an invisible force blast. "Hit," Shoji declared. "Well done, go stand with the others. Okay, everybody listen up." He pointed at the group who had missed their shots. "You are all going to sit down, conjure your favourite artifact and keep it stable until I tell you to stop. Get to it." There was a chorus of groans. It was a dull but demanding activity that was likely to leave them exhausted and with headaches. "Work up a sweat, it will do you good." He pointed to the other group. "You are going to line up youngest to oldest, and we're going to try this again. This time, you are going to try your level best to knock the stone over." The third one had just about succeeded doing that with a lightning strike when Shoji felt the presence approach. He looked over to see his mother walking down the path they had taken from the house earlier. When she spotted him, she stopped and stood there, her hands tucked in the sleeves of her kimono before her. She sent no telepathic message and it was too far to see her expression clearly, but Shoji could tell she wanted to talk. "I need to go talk to Kaori-mama," he announced to the group he was working with. He tossed the stick he was carrying out towards the target rock, it fell to the ground about ten meters out. "If nobody knocks it over from here, go out to where the stick is and everybody gets another try." They all nodded or otherwise acknowledged this. He turned to walk back to where his mother stood. He spared a glance at the first group. The were all sitting cross-legged in a rough circle, concentrating on the variety of fireballs, kinetites and ball lightning they had conjured between their hands. Everybody was still holding up. "Hi Mom," Shoji said as he came within earshot, waving casually. She just nodded. "How is target practice going?" Shoji shrugged. "No surprises. Everybody's doing at least passably well for their age, one or two are actually quite good. Nobody really outstanding." "It's not the sort of training they're used to," Kaori said, a hint of disapproval in her tone. "Well, it's obvious they've been getting at least some practice." "One of the things the Matriarch insisted upon," Kaori said regretfully. "That and PK barriers." "It only makes sense," Shoji insisted. "Offense and defense. Whatever our special talents, we should all be able to take care of ourselves. Have to make sure everybody can dish it out and take it too." "As you say," Kaori said, sounding unenthusiastic. "I'm just afraid that this sort of thing encourages a seige mentality. Us against the world." "No harm in being prepared," Shoji said, hoping this wasn't going to lead to another weary argument. "At any rate, the reason I came is to tell you she has summoned you. Yui and Akechi as well." Shoji managed to keep his poker face intact. "You mean grandma Himiko?" "Correct." "Did she say what for?" "I can't imagine." Shoji could hardly have gotten a stronger hint that he owed her an explanation. Shoji sighed. "I can." "Is there something I should know?" "Oh, I suppose you'll be finding out soon enough anyway. Yui's taken two more Soul Icons." Kaori's expression darkened. "Then she was the one responsible for the other shrine that was destroyed. And the temple as well." Shoji chuckled. He tried to convince himself that his nonchalance wasn't an act. "They seem to really like keeping the Weird Shit under tight wraps, but I guess it does get into the papers eventually." Kaori's expression and tone did not change. "Shoji, why on earth did you allow this to happen?" "Because I want the same thing we all do, Mom," Shoji said, a little more serious now. "I want to know what's going on, what this is all about. The Crystal, the Palace, everything." Kaori shook her head. "Shoji, the Matriarch had explicitly forbidden this, did you really think you could keep it secret?" "No. At least not for long." "The Matriarch will be furious." "Not when she sees the effect two more Soul Icons have on the Seed Crystal." Kaori's eyes went wide. In a tremulous voice she asked, "Shoji, you didn't ... ?" Shoji nodded. "Yep. We took them into the Seed Crystal cave. They're sitting there right now." Shoji was surprised to see what looked like real fear in his mother's face. "Oh Shoji, to do such a thing in secret ... " she took a moment to compose herself. "Did anything happen?" "Nothing bad. Why don't you come see for yourself?" She shook her head. "The Matriarch was very clear, only the three of you are to go." Shoji tried to ignore the feeling in the pit of his stomach. That didn't sound good. "Did she say anything else?" "Only to come without delay. You had better go tell Yui and Akechi, they're in the house. I'll go tell the children that you were called away." "Okay. See you later." Shoji turned to go. **Shoji.** Shoji turned back, startled at the intense anxiety in his mother's sending. It was very rare that they spoke like this to each other, when it was not for the benefit of Yui's condition. **Yes, Mother?** **I beg you, do nothing more to anger the Matriarch. For Yui's sake, if nothing else.** Shoji slowly nodded. **It'll be okay, Mother.** **The First Ancestor be with you.** **Thanks.** Shoji turned to go. As he entered the wooded area of the grounds and rounded a bend, he quickened his pace. Kaori had infected him with her anxiety. By the time he got near the house, he managed to tuck the feeling away. **Yui, Akechi. I'm coming to the rock garden. Meet me there, okay?** **Is something wrong?** came back Yui's anxious reply. **We'll talk there.** The two of them were waiting for him on one of the great flat stones that formed the paths weaving through the rock garden at the back of the house. It was a simple place, but well tended. The gravel was freshly raked, the whole thing practically drooled peace and tranquility. A sharp contrast to the mood of his friend and his lover standing there waiting for him. **Have they found out?** Akechi asked without preamble. **Looks that way. We're supposed to go see grandma Himiko, all three of us.** **You think we should go?** Akechi asked. Shoji rolled his eyes. **Yes of course we should go, we have to. Now take it easy, we knew this was going to happen. It'll be just like last time, once grandma Himiko sees what we've accomplished, she'll forget all about being mad at us.** **It wasn't an accident this time,** Yui reminded him nervously. **We deliberately disobeyed her orders.** **It's just like we discussed, we'll let the results speak for themselves.** He stepped onto one of the big flagstones and beckoned them. **Shall we go?** After just a moment's hesitation, Shoji's two companions walked over to join him. They stepped onto the stone, and wordlessly the two men each took one of Yui's hands. She closed her eyes, and an instant later they were standing in front of the Matriarch's house. It was cooler here, and there was a very light drizzle. The dark house looming over them looked even more depressing than usual. Shoji put his arm around Yui and steered her towards the front door. Akechi followed closely behind them. As usual, a man stood guard. Shoji recognized the big, bearded man as one of his great uncles. **We were summoned by the Matriarch,** he said, adding just enough formality not to be rude. **She awaits you in the rear garden,** the man returned, the icy timbre of his sending suggesting they had been keeping her waiting. **I will accompany you.** **We know the way.** **Nevertheless.** The guard led them down the familiar path through the house to one of the elaborately painted ancient sliding doors that led out to the garden that faced the cliffside. Exiting through the door onto the covered wooden walkway that separated the house from the garden, the guard turned right and led them down the walkway. A short distance away, Shoji saw the Matriarch kneeling down on the walkway. Before her was a small bonsai tree in a ceramic pot. As they approached, she reached out and cut off another microscopic bit of green with a tiny set of shears. The guard knelt before her. Shoji heard nothing, but could guess he was giving her a private telepathic message. After a moment, he stood and walked away, no doubt having been dismissed in similar fashion. She had not acknowledged him in any visible way. Shoji and his two companions simply stood and watched the Matriarch as she seemed to consider which piece of the tiny tree was not quite right. The only sound was the drizzle on the stones and gravel nearby, and water dripping off the two great oak trees towering over the garden. **Whose idea was it to ravage more holy places?** Himiko still sat unmoving, contemplating her handiwork. Shoji took a step forward and knelt down on the floorboards. **Grandma Himiko, it was my idea to take more Soul Icons.** **And was it your idea to bring them into the Seed Crystal cave?** **Yes.** There was a pause. **Is there any reason I should not have you all mind scanned, brand you as renegades and have you all cast out with the rest of the black sheep?** Shoji took just a moment to collect his thoughts. **Matriarch, I was acting on a hunch, and I realize that what I have done was not without risk. But in doing this we have discovered something the Ancients have always been longing for.** **And what might that be?** **The purpose of the Seed Crystal.** Himiko snorted and fixed him with a cold stare. **That is some boast, stripling. So tell me, how did you find the thing that millennia of searching by generations of Ancients was unable to uncover?** **When we brought the third Soul Icon into the cave, we spent a great deal of time contemplating the image from the Crystal, which was even clearer. Yui-chan was the first to see it, but when she explained it to me and I looked for myself, I found that what she said was true.** Himiko shifted her gaze to Yui, who was still standing a step behind Shoji. **And what is it you think you found, girl?** Yui stepped forward and knelt beside Shoji. He could see how frightened she was, but she was keeping it under control. It didn't hurt that she had learned how to keep her heartbeat and adrenaline level down with her powers. **When I was in the cave, I tried to read the image like I read the lifeforce of an animal. The same way I read the animals' memories. I wanted to find out where the crystal palace came from. It was revealed to me as if the palace really had a memory.** Yui paused for just a moment. **The Seed Crystal will become the palace.** Himiko's expression was inscrutable. After about half a minute, she came stiffly to her feet. **Follow me.** She walked to where a single stair led down to the garden. She moved to step into a pair of crude sandals that were on the step. **Grandma Himiko, there's no need for you to get wet,** Yui suddenly said. **If you're going to the caves, I can teleport us all from here.** The Matriarch looked up at her. **Very well.** She stepped back up onto the walkway. Yui walked over to her and took the hand the Matriarch offered. Akechi took Yui's other hand, and Shoji stood behind Yui, resting his hands on her shoulders. A moment later, they were on the great flat stone in the familiar little cave, the twisting tunnel to the Seed Crystal cave opening before them. Shoji felt himself relax. He had been afraid Yui would forget herself and 'port them directly there. They followed the Matriarch down the dimly lit tunnel. Shoji kept one hand resting gently on Yui's shoulder. She looked to be holding up quite well. And Akechi just looked very nervous. Only once did he see the wild look flash briefly in Akechi's eyes. That was to be expected, under the circumstances. When they entered the cave, Shoji stole a quick look around at the walls. Three points of light marked the positions of the crystals holding the Soul Icons. Right where he had left them. Whatever the Matriarch thought of how he had obtained the Soul Icons, it seemed she had no intention of removing them. But the cave was deserted. For now, the Matriarch was apparently keeping the secret of the additional Soul Icons to herself and her chosen few. Which meant the prey was nearly down. The Matriarch walked up close to the brightly glowing Seed Crystal in the centre of the cave. Shoji and his companions stood well back. Himiko stood unmoving, silhouetted and dwarfed by the great crystal before her. They waited for what seemed like an eternity. At length the Matriarch turned and walked back towards them. She stood before Shoji and looked up at him, her expression neutral. **As you say, the Palace is the future form of the Seed Crystal itself. So how does knowing this help us? How does it justify the risk of attacking the outsiders' holy places?** Shoji had her right where he wanted her. Barely containing his elation, Shoji played his trump card. **Matriarch, each new Soul Icon we have brought before the Seed Crystal has resonated with it, clarified its image as the holy places they were taken from clarified our individual inner visions. Now when I see the vision of the palace, I see not just a place, but a place with a purpose. It is a sanctuary and a source of power. **Matriarch, I believe that if we can clarify the image further, it will reveal exactly how we can bring the crystal palace into being. The outsiders' world is becoming more and more dangerous, not just for them but for us. Sometime soon it may fall to pieces. When that happens, we may need this sanctuary.** It was three heartbeats before the Matriarch turned around to face the Seed Crystal again. But before she turned, Shoji had glimpsed the look in her face. He saw the hunger and the eagerness, saw enough to know that he had snared her. After a minute or so, she turned to face him again. **If the outsiders see you use your powers even once, I will make sure no outsider ever sees you again. If they capture you, we will leave you to their mercies. If they kill you, we will neither bury nor avenge you.** Shoji nodded. **I understand. Thank you, Matriarch.** **You may all go.** Shoji had to take Yui by the shoulder again, lead her back to the tunnel. She looked stunned, as if unable to believe the Matriarch had just let them go. Akechi just looked a little less nervous. When they were near the other end of the tunnel, Yui stopped and turned to face Shoji, still looking bewildered. **Senpai ... what did the Matriarch mean? Is it really okay? She's not mad at us anymore?** Shoji grinned. **She's too busy to be mad, too busy thinking of all the Soul Icons you're going to be getting for her.** Yui's mouth dropped open as the meaning of Himiko's parting words finally sunk in. **She wasn't exactly giving us an open endorsement,** Akechi noted. **Nope, she gave us something better,** Shoji answered him. **She gave us carte blanche. I was afraid she might keep us on a short leash, even have one of her lackeys follow us around. This is even better than I had hoped.** **Do you really think we can turn the Seed Crystal into the crystal palace?** Yui asked. **One thing at a time,** Shoji said, leaning forward and kissing her forehead. **Today, we go celebrate. Tomorrow, we go visit some more of the shrines, the ones that give you a warm fuzzy feeling. Then we pick one and start planning our next hunt.** End Chapter 3 Subject: [Fanfic - SM - Secrets 4 - corrected] Date: Sun, 04 Jan 1998 19:56:28 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan (file attached. Minor silly errors corrected, mispelled names and such). -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- Secrets Chapter 4 - Night Stalkers "A fine dinner," Thetan said, placing his chopsticks down on his bowl. "Are you sure you won't have some more?" Jeneth asked encouragingly. "No, thank you." "I'll wager it's more than he usually eats in a week, up in his temple," K'Theelm said. They all laughed. Jeneth stood up. "I'll put away what needs to be refrigerated. I think K'Theelm is eager to show you the results of his work." "And I'm eager to see it." Jeneth smiled and carefully picked the big tray containing the remains of their dinner up off the dining room table. "Don't bother with the rest, I'll clean it up later," K'Theelm said as he and Thetan also got up. "Thanks. If you'll excuse me I'll be out on the balcony. It should be a lovely sunset tonight, no offense intended but I'd much rather watch that than look over your shoulder at your infernal machines," Jeneth said, placing the tray on the kitchen counter. "Well, it won't be anything you haven't already seen," K'Theelm replied. He led Thetan to his room. "So you two have reviewed the results already?" Thetan asked. "Yes, earlier today." K'Theelm entered his room and switched on the ceiling light. Thetan followed him in. In sharp contrast to the rest of the apartment he shared with Jeneth, K'Theelm's own room was what could politely be described as busy. One wall was floor to ceiling shelves overflowing with books and stacked magazines. Another wall was dominated by a huge bulletin board on which had been pinned various overlapping newspaper clippings, scrawled notes, software reference cards and the like. Against a third wall was a functional wide steel desk, with a smaller set of shelves resting on it. Only the sliding closet door and the wall around the window was relatively clear. To his credit, K'Theelm left enough of the bamboo mat floor free of cardboard boxes full of Heaven knows what that it was not awkward to move about. There was probably even ample room for him to lay out his futon each night. Thetan knew K'Theelm well enough to be sure that there really was a precise order behind what looked like utter chaos. K'Theelm sat down in one of the little office chairs, and invited Thetan to sit in the other. Thetan carefully lowered his bulk onto the fragile looking thing, hoping he wouldn't damage the tatami mats underneath. He was even heavier than his size would suggest, his muscle and bone built up by means both physical and otherwise. The screen of the computer monitor sitting on the desk was displaying pictures of two planets, slowly rotating. One was Earth, the other their own home planet. Thetan had seen this before, understood that it was called a Screen Saver, though what exactly it was saving K'Theelm had never made clear. "I see you've dispensed with the typewriter," Thetan noted. "Keyboard," K'Theelm corrected him. "Since Jeneth says she's afraid to touch the computer, I'm the only one using it." From underneath the desk K'Theelm pulled out the thing which had made the keyboard superfluous. It was a metal band with a hinge that let it split apart. K'Theelm closed the band around his left wrist and locked it in place. A wire trailed from the band down below the desk. On a previous occasion K'Theelm had showed Thetan what the wire led to, a tangled mass of wires and circuit boards that acted as what K'Theelm called an interface between his symbiont and the personal computer that stood upright on the floor under the desk. Somehow, it read electromagnetic signals that K'Theelm's symbiont sent pulsing through his body, and translated it into commands that could control the Earth computer. It had taken him months to perfect. The screen saver image on the screen dissolved, to be replaced by what K'Theelm referred to as a desktop. The image was divided into rectangular sections, each containing rows of tiny symbols. Each symbol had a name attached in small text, designating its function. As Thetan watched, the image of a little arrow moved around the screen, no doubt controlled by signals K'Theelm was sending through his symbiont. One of the symbols suddenly flickered and expanded to fill the screen. "My symbiont did most of the analysis," K'Theelm explained as he worked. "I'm simply using a graphics program to display the results that I transferred to the Earth computer." The mostly blank screen was suddenly filled by what Thetan recognized as a map of the grounds around the temple which had been destroyed. As K'Theelm spoke, the little arrow, what Thetan had heard him refer to as a cursor, moved around the map, indicating particular places. "Over here, there was a definite signature of spatial distortion, quite recent. Also over here." "Teleportation?" "Almost certainly. It's small enough that it would have to be at most two or three man sized beings. Certainly not a warp capable vehicle. That means one or more beings with teleportation as a natural or induced ability." "Interesting ..." Thetan said, prompting his friend to shift his gaze from the screen and look at him. "The police investigators were telling us to keep an eye out for two perpetrators, who they described as a young man of medium build and a short, slim young woman. Supposedly this was based on an eyewitness at another incident, just a glimpse of them at a distance." "Two people would fit what evidence I found. Perhaps one to teleport them in, and the other to attack the temple." "You think the attack on the temple was also by a person with some natural power?" "Yes. Look here." K'Theelm shifted his attention back to the screen. "A very powerful psionic attack was directed against the lifeforce that was suspended in and around the temple building. It was directed from a single point, right here. The destruction of the building and grounds was simply a side effect of extracting that lifeforce." "Would it really cause that much physical damage, just extracting the lifeforce from its resting place?" "The lifeforce was strengthened and secured over a period of centuries. As to why this happens at certain holy sites ... that question is outside my domain. At any rate, it was extracted in a matter of minutes. One would not expect it to go gently." Thetan thought about that for a moment. "Just how powerful would these creatures have to be, to do this?" "Personal teleportation, pulling deep-seated life energy out of an ancient holy place? They would have to be immensely powerful, at least close to what one would expect of an Avatar." Thetan raised an eyebrow. K'Theelm shook his head. "I don't know if it could be one of the local Avatars. We know virtually nothing about them, other than my own idle speculation." Thetan knew what K'Theelm was referring to, his speculation that the legendary Sailor Senshi were in fact the Avatars. "I find it inconceivable that an Avatar would do such a thing," Thetan said gravely. "Unless they had been corrupted by Galaxia." "We have always assumed that the local Avatars defeated her. Perhaps one or more of them was corrupted by her first, and is still at large." "That's as good an explanation as any. Even if we knew whether it was true, it wouldn't tell us anything useful about these creatures." Thetan smiled. "Quite right." K'Theelm had no use for data that didn't tell him something practical. Which was what made him a natural Engineer. "Do you think it would be worth examining some of the other sites?" "Probably not. This site was the freshest, and by now the residual energy even there will be fading away. As for physical evidence, we probably couldn't find anything the local police forces have not." Which was precious little, Thetan thought. "Then for now it looks like we've learned everything we can. Thank you K'Theelm, this was excellent work." K'Theelm nodded. Thetan could see the unspoken question in his expression. *What now?* Thetan wished he had an answer. No point dwelling on that now. "Perhaps we could go rejoin Jeneth." "You go ahead, I want to finish up one or two things here and go clean up in the other room. I'll join you later." "Very well. See you soon." Thetan got up and went out to the living room whose sliding glass doors led out to the balcony. He could see Jeneth seated in one of the chairs around the little round table there, facing away from him, watching the sunset. Thetan stood there for a moment and let his mind drift. K'Theelm and Jeneth had shared this apartment since he had joined his temple five years ago. He had taken this as a sign that they were growing closer. But as it had turned out, their closeness seemed to be like that of siblings, and would almost certainly remain that way. Thetan felt some regret over that. His own vows, both those of his original order and of his new adopted one, precluded his taking a mate, so he had always thought his two friends would make what seemed to be the only reasonable choice. Taking a mate from among the Earthlings would involve the awkward matter of revealing their true origins ... and of course, their true forms. So far, neither of them was showing any inclination of treading that path. Thetan slid open the door, stepped out onto the balcony and closed it shut behind him. Jeneth turned her head and greeted him with a warm smile. "That didn't take much time." "As always, our Engineer does an outstanding job of distilling the facts to the bare essentials." "Well, you still missed the sunset." Indeed, there was just a tiny, red sliver of the sun still visible at the horizon. It would probably be gone in less than a minute. Thetan sat down across the table from Jeneth, in another chair that faced the magnificent view of the city presented by the high balcony. The delicate black steel railing did little to obscure the view. Lights were starting to become visible down below as twilight slowly descended. Thetan noticed what Jeneth was holding. "Are you still examining that?" "Not really." She turned it about in her hands. It was the head of a small obsidian statue, one of those which had been destroyed with the temple. A jagged edge marked where the neck had sheared off, and chips were taken out of it all over. It was barely recognizable. "I was just thinking about what happened there, somehow it seemed natural to have this with me." "K'Theelm told me what he found," Thetan said. Jeneth didn't need any further prompting. "I'm afraid I can't add much. I saw the same thing that you did. The life energy held in that holy place has been taken away or destroyed. The only thing I could see more clearly than you was the pain, the agony of the lifeforce being uprooted like that. Of course a pool of energy like that has no mind of its own, but still ... " she shook her head. "Whatever did that, must have been capable of feeling the effects of what it was doing. It would have felt just like killing something by inches, like slowly crushing its soul. And yet they did it." "And may very well do it again." "K'Theelm told me how powerful these beings must be." Thetan could hear the hints of anxiety in Jeneth's voice. "Jeneth, I have no intention of putting you in danger." Jeneth shook her head. "You mistake me, Thetan. Yes, I am frightened at the thought of facing these beings. They may even be some of Galaxia's twisted Avatars, the same ones that destroyed our world. But if you feel it is our duty to confront them, I will follow you without hesitation." Thetan had mixed feelings at hearing this. "Jeneth, it pains me that I must ask this of you, and of K'Theelm. We had told ourselves that we are done with the Avatar Wars. But I don't know what else to do. The Earthmen seem to be out of their element. They can't even seem to grasp that they are dealing with beings who can warp reality with their minds. It's like they simply cannot accept the idea. We may be all there is to stop them." "We hardly know more than the Earthmen do," Jeneth reminded him. "We have no idea why they are doing these things." "I don't think these are acts of simple malevolence or hatred. These attacks have been carefully planned to be quick and efficient, avoiding contact with the local inhabitants. There is purpose behind this, of that much I am sure." "Perhaps it is time we once again consider trying to contact the local Avatars," Jeneth said hesitantly. Thetan had expected her to suggest that. "Yes, we know that at least one of them must yet live." The power that had drawn them to this world still lit up this city like a beacon, as strong as ever. The elusive Avatar to whom they and everyone else on this world owed their lives. It could be none other. Thetan felt a sudden unease. His eyes shifted this way and that. It felt something like his Warrior's sixth sense, warning him of a threat. But this was something different. More like hearing a distant scream. His eyes met Jeneth's. She nodded in understanding. They were both feeling it. Jeneth stood up, and walked over to the railing, resting her hands on it. She looked out over the city, its buildings now dark shadows under the dim twilight. "I've felt something like this before," she said softly, still scanning the horizon. "On at least two of the nights where holy sites were ravaged." "You never told me this," Thetan said, standing and going to join her. "I wasn't sure. This one is stronger ... no, nearer." She turned to face him. "Thetan, I think another holy place is coming under attack right now. Nearby." She pointed to the northwest. "Somewhere out there." Thetan made his decision on the spot. He turned, took two long strides to the door and slid it open. K'Theelm was in the kitchen, putting things away. "K'Theelm, Jeneth has detected another attack. I want you to take me there." K'Theelm froze in surprise for just a heartbeat. Then he just nodded, put down what he was holding and walked into the living room. Thetan moved for the door, but K'Theelm waved him back to the balcony. "It's quicker to fly straight out." "We risk-" "Too dark, nobody will see." He was probably right, if they went out cloaked then in this light they would be essentially invisible. K'Theelm dropped his glamour, reverting to his true appearance as he shunted power to his symbiont in preparation for flight. Thetan did likewise, preparing himself for battle. Even when alone, they tended to keep their glamours activated. It was a good habit to maintain. When Thetan stepped out onto the balcony, he noticed that Jeneth had dropped her glamour as well. "Jeneth-" "I can pinpoint the spot more closely as we approach." "I can-" "Not as well as I can." She seemed prepared to stand her ground, and he didn't have time to argue. Besides, she was right. "K'Theelm, take us north west." "Yes, sir." As K'Theelm's symbiont enveloped the three of them in a shimmering sphere of energy, Thetan mused how long it had been since K'Theelm had addressed him formally like this. Not since the day of Galaxia's defeat, probably. Faced with a coming confrontation, they had quickly slipped back into old habits. The feeling of weightlessness came, and they slowly rose up and over the balcony railing. They picked up speed rapidly as they flew out across the city. Thetan fought a slight feeling of vertigo. *Out of practice. I've gotten soft.* But he could see and feel his battle aura come into being, rising to the level of a slow burn. Yes, old habits died hard. And K'Theelm must have been keeping himself prepared as well, he was giving them a fast, smooth ride. "Left by one point of the compass," Jeneth said. K'Theelm complied without responding. Thetan glanced at the healer. K'Theelm's barrier protected them from most of the effect of their passage through the air, but even so they were buffeted by a fairly stiff breeze. Like all of them, the healer tended to go more or less horizontal when in flight, to minimize resistance to the breeze that set her long hair streaming behind her. It also made it easier for her to scan the ground below them. She pointed down. "Over there, the slight rise to the left of the apartment tower." "Got it," K'Theelm responded. He took them down, vectoring straight in on the temple that Thetan could also see now. It was quite dark, but not enough that Thetan could not still make it out quite well. It was a small Buddhist temple sitting on the top of a low hill, surrounded by trees. "Spirits ... !" Jeneth breathed. The temple building looked like it was being demolished. Tiles were being ripped off the roof, and pieces of the sliding panels around its perimeter, the white rice paper in the panes long since shredded, were breaking away. The pieces were being whipped around the building along with dust and gravel from the surrounding grounds, as if it were trapped in an immense cyclone. It seemed like there should have been more noise, but there was just a gentle whisper of wind, a low rumble and muted sounds of breaking timbers. But this was probably not what Jeneth had reacted to. Thetan felt it now too, as if the Earth itself were screaming in agony. Thetan was the first to spot them. "I see two people on the grounds, just in front of the temple building." "I see them," K'Theelm acknowledged. Thetan debated dropping Jeneth off first. But unless they took her further away, she was probably safest near him anyway. "Bring us down ten meters behind them, then withdraw the cloak. Have your shield at the ready. Everybody stay close." "Understood," they both said. K'Theelm sent them plummeting straight down now, giving them just enough time to get their feet under them. It didn't look like he was giving himself enough room to slow them down. Thetan's stomach did a flip as they were brought to an abrupt halt just a couple of meters above the ground. To K'Theelm's credit, he did not falter in his task of lowering them to the ground, even when the building exploded. It didn't exactly explode, it was more like every piece of wood, every tile, every stone in the foundation suddenly broke into pieces. Again, there was not nearly as much noise as there should have been. Instead, there was suddenly a flash of light. Or rather countless lights. A swarm of multi-coloured motes of light shot up out of the collapsing building. They swirled about madly like a swarm of angry bees, but quickly their motion became calmer. They drifted down, coming together into a tighter formation. The screaming in Thetan's head had suddenly stopped. That silence was more stunning than the relative silence with which the building fell down into a cloud of dust. Thetan was momentarily startled to have ground under his feet and a returning sensation of weight, so intent had he been on the horrible spectacle before him. He recovered in a heartbeat, directing his attention at the two people before him. As the energy sphere around them withdrew, his vision of them became even clearer. They matched the description he had heard from one of the other sites, a man of medium height and build, and a short, slim young woman. They were dressed in the casual denim slacks and T-shirts so popular among young people here. They looked just like any of the thousands of young couples who might have been walking about the city enjoying the summer evening. Except that this petite young woman was calmly gathering the life force of the destroyed temple in between her outstretched hands. Thetan strode forward and was about to shout a challenge when the young man abruptly spun about and dropped into a crouch. Thetan wondered what had warned the man, his steps had been careful, noiseless ones. He got his first good look at the man. He was a slim, well muscled young Asian man. His unruly mop of hair seemed lighter than it should have been. His handsome face showed alarm, but no sign of panic. The alarm was quickly giving way to wonder and bewilderment. Without their glamours, Thetan and his two friends were clearly not human, even to a casual glance. His companion also turned around now. She gasped at sight of the newcomers. The bright kaleidoscope of light held between her hands wavered slightly, but she held it in place. Thetan only spared her a quick glance. She looked even younger than he had supposed. She just stared at him with wide eyed shock. So they were apparently unused to seeing extraterrestrials. Whatever powers they had, they were undoubtedly Earthlings, they would be confused by the appearance of these alien beings. Well and good, time to press his advantage. The young man was probably the greatest threat, if for no other reason than that his hands were free. Thetan decided to address himself to that one. He stood in place and fixed the man with an icy stare. "I am Thetan of the Warrior Caste. I have witnessed your crime. You have defiled a holy place. You will answer for that in due course. Right now, you will return the life energy of this temple to its rightful place." The young man gave no answer, just stared at him. His eyes shifted, he looked distracted. No doubt also sizing up Thetan's companions, who would look equally strange to him. Thetan was about to repeat his demand when his sixth sense tickled. He spun around to shout a warning, but it was too late. Another man had already grabbed K'Theelm's neck from behind. The Engineer convulsed, his eyes glazed over and he started to fall. Jeneth shrieked and sidestepped away. She would have sensed the psionic attack just as Thetan now did. Thetan's battle aura flashed and crackled as he prepared to blast the attacker. Acting on pure instinct, Thetan spun around and threw up a psionic shield just on time to deflect the orange-red tongue of flame that the first man had thrown at him. It splashed against the barrier, sent him staggering back. *Strong. Won't be able to deflect many of those.* He could only spare his companions a quick glance. The attacker was nowhere in sight. Couldn't have moved that fast, must have teleported or cloaked. Jeneth was already kneeling over the comatose K'Theelm, examining him. She should have been watching out for the other attacker. There wasn't exactly time to suggest that right now. The next attack was two fireballs in quick succession. Thetan's shield held. He was gathering his ki for a counterattack when the man spread out his arms and suddenly he and his companion disappeared behind a wall of flame. Thetan kept his place in front of his companions, kept his shield at the ready. It could be an illusion through which a new attack would come. He reached out with his sixth sense, trying to locate the other attacker. Nothing. He was debating shooting a force blast through the flame barrier, blind. If those people had any sense they would have shifted position by now, but ... The barrier abruptly disappeared. There was nothing on the other side but the collapsed temple. They were gone. Thetan turned back to his companions. Jeneth had put K'Theelm on his back. She was kneeling over his head, his face cradled in her hands. His eyes were closed now, and Thetan could see him breathing. "How is he?" "Just unconscious. It was a powerful psionic attack. His symbiont protected him, there won't be any permanent damage. But he won't wake up for hours." Her words were clinical, but she couldn't hide the distress in her voice. She was hunched over K'Theelm, Thetan couldn't see her face. It sounded like she was probably crying. He could hardly blame her, K'Theelm was like a brother to her and he could have been killed. They all could have. Thetan cursed himself. He had *known* there could easily be a third enemy, but he had dropped them down here like some over anxious greenhorn. There would be plenty of time for self recrimination later. "Can he be moved?" "Yes." "The local authorities could be here any minute, we should move him out of here." "I saw a side entrance to the grounds on the way down, perhaps we should use that." Well, at least somebody was doing a good job of looking ahead, Thetan thought bitterly. He bent down, and easily picked K'Theelm up in his arms. Jeneth led him down a path through the line of trees to where she thought there was a gate. It was locked. Thetan put K'Theelm down long enough to force the lock, then carried him out onto the street beyond. By the time they found a little park a couple of blocks away, they heard sirens approaching the temple behind them. Somebody had taken note of the fireworks. Thetan set K'Theelm down on the ground under a tree in a dark section of the park. "How are we to get him home?" Jeneth asked, sitting down beside him. Thetan considered this. "Jeneth, I understand you have some minimal rapport with his symbiont, do you think you could coax it into activating his glamour?" "Yes, I think so." "Then I can go call a taxi cab. We'll explain to the driver that our friend has overindulged in drink, and we are taking him home." And if he didn't believe that, Thetan could easily make him believe it. Jeneth laid her hands over K'Theelm's head again. It was several minutes before the glamour reasserted itself, making him look human again. His human guise appeared to be sleeping peacefully. "Are you okay?" Thetan asked, noting that Jeneth was shaking slightly. "Yes. It was difficult, the symbiont is still agitated from the attack." "Then I'll let you rest for a few minutes. I saw a phone box a block back, we can take him back there." "That reminds me." Jeneth reached into a back pocket of K'Theelm's trousers and drew out a wallet. Thetan frowned, wondering what she was up to. That is, until she found and removed a telephone card. "It's a good thing he always carries this." She looked at him, and her smile faded. "Thetan, is something wrong?" "Not really, I was just thinking how much better a job of planning ahead you've been doing. Tonight I've behaved no better than a reckless child." Jeneth shook her head. "Thetan, you know that's not true. We saw an opportunity to oppose a force of chaos, and we took the risk. Nothing more." "But the risk was not mine alone." "K'Theelm and I took the same oaths." True enough. Each caste had its own set of oaths, its own set of obligations which was pressed upon anyone who chose to enter. But the one oath they all had in common was to fight the forces of chaos, whatever form they may take. "Well, if we're going to uphold our oath, no more halfway measures," Thetan said. "From here on, we are fully dedicating ourselves to hunting down these criminals. We'll show them as little mercy as they showed us." A little later, Jeneth suggested they start moving. Thetan carried K'Theelm over to the phone box, and Jeneth made the call. As it turned out, the cab driver didn't really care why a monk and a pretty American woman were carrying some drunk skinny guy around late at night. It's a strange world, shit happens. ***** Usagi looked up from her reading assignment. It sounded like Mamoru had made some sound. He had stopped typing on his laptop. His expression was odd. "Mamo-chan, is something wrong?" He looked at her and shook his head. "No, I just had this odd feeling for a moment. Like something was wrong. Anyway, it's gone." He shrugged. "Maybe somebody was talking about me." "You're supposed to sneeze when that happens," Usagi quipped. Mamoru smiled. "Okay then, maybe my subconscious is trying to remind me of something I've forgotten." "Well, you did forget to get me my ice cream at the store today." "I'm afraid not. We agreed, one bucket per week. Not my fault you ate it all in two days." "Oh well, it was worth a try." Usagi closed the book she was reading, rolled onto her back and stretched out cat-like on the carpet, uttering a low sigh. "Oh, my brain hurts, it just can't hold any more." "Well, you've been at it for three hours, I'm impressed. I had that reading assignment too, It's pretty tough." "Does that mean you won't scold me if I take a break?" "Well ... I could probably do with a break too, so why not." Usagi smiled sweetly. "Why thank you, Senpai." Mamoru chuckled at the running joke. Usagi was taking many of the same liberal arts courses Mamoru had when he was in university, so inevitably he ended up giving her help and advice, just like any good upperclassman would. Usagi crawled over to where Mamoru was sitting cross-legged in front of the coffee table. She gave him a kiss and snuggled up next to him, peering down at his laptop. "So what'cha doing?" "I'm starting to type up my new article, the one on recent terrorist acts in Japan." "I thought you didn't want to do that one." "Well, they really want it so the money's good. I've managed to convince them I should change the slant a bit, talk more about incidents further in the past. It means more research work, but I think it'll be worth it." Usagi remembered him talking about this before. He felt uncomfortable writing on that subject, it seemed too much like jumping on the millennial doom bandwagon. "Well, try not to make it a doom and gloom piece, okay? There's too much of that." "Couldn't agree more." Mamoru touched a key to save his file, then folded the laptop screen down. He leaned back against the couch behind him, and Usagi settled into a more comfortable position next to him. He wrapped his arm around her and she sighed contentedly. Yes, she really had needed this break. She closed her eyes and just let the music wash over her for a few moments. Some time after she had moved in they had settled on the subsets of each other's CD collections that was acceptable to both. Her techno pop and his classics had mostly been pushed aside in favour of her new age and his jazz. It was one of the former playing right now. "Is this calendar what I think it is?" Usagi heard Mamoru ask. She opened her eyes to see him fingering a calendar that was lying on the coffee table. "Yep. I was looking at it today, I think I've settled on a date." "Again?" She poked him and he grunted. "Smart aleck. Open it up to October." He slid the calendar closer, turned over a couple of pages, then picked it up and held it for them both to see. "Hmmm ... on a hunch, I'd guess it's the day where you've drawn the little rabbit head and the top hat inside the pink heart shape." "Mmm Hmmm. You like it?" "What, the day or the drawing? Ouch! Sorry. Sure, the day is fine. It's the one that Rei suggested in the first place, after all that research you had her do." "Well it's important. We're going to be married for at least a thousand years, we want to start it off on a lucky day." "I'm all for that. Just make sure you keep this calendar around." "Why?" "So that I don't forget our thousandth anniversary." Usagi put on her best femme fatale look. "Mamo-chan, I am running out of spots to hit that don't hurt very much." Mamoru drew her closer and kissed her warmly on the forehead. He drew back and looked at her, more serious now. "So you've really decided?" Usagi smiled and nodded. "Yes, I'd like it to be that day." "Really and truly?" "Really and truly." "Really and truly and really and truly?" "Really and truly and really and truly." "Really and truly and-" "Mamo-chan!" She did manage to find one more spot that wouldn't really hurt ... much. They ended their fit of laughing with a long kiss. Mamoru pulled away slightly and took Usagi's hand. "Okay, I guess that's settled. I'll call Rei's grandfather in the morning, so he can free up all those other days at the shrine we had reserved. We'll have crossed the Rubicon then, so there'll be no getting out of it." "Crossed the what?" A minute into Mamoru's lesson on Roman history, Usagi regretted asking. "Okay, so it's the point of no return, right?" "Uh-huh." "Then I guess we'd better start getting visas and stuff for our honeymoon." "Well, before I call tomorrow we should decide at least one other thing." "What's that?" "Maid of honer." Usagi's feeling of elation at having finally announced her decision went down just a notch. In a way, this other decision had been even harder. Of course it was a no brainer figuring out who her bridesmaids would be. But to choose one among them for the position of honer ... that had been agonizing. "Actually, I've decided that already. I'm going to ask Rei-chan." Mamoru smiled. "Naturally." "What do you mean naturally? It was a hard decision for me!" "I know, Usako," Mamoru said, reaching out and gently stroking her hair. "I know it was hard. But really, your choice was inevitable." Usagi's indignation melted away. But she felt uneasy, they were heading into an area where they needed to tread lightly. "Why do you say that?" she asked hesitantly, trying to sound neutral. "Because she's in love with you." Usagi just stared at Mamoru. She wasn't sure what answer she was expecting, but it wasn't that. Before she could decide how to respond, Mamoru's expression relaxed. "Anyway, your decision makes mine easier. I've decided to ask Yuichirou to be the best man." Usagi was taken by surprise again. Thoughts of Mamoru's previous statement faded away. "Really? I thought for sure you would ask Motoki." "It was a tough choice for me too. I've known Motoki longer, and I probably know him better." "Then why?" Usagi knew that Mamoru and Yuichirou had come to know each other better over the past few years. They did all sorts of things together, had even gone on a couple of long cycling tours in the country together. But still, they weren't exactly best friends. "I'm pretty sure he knows about us." His meaning took a moment to sink in. "You mean ... do you think Rei told him?" "I'm not sure. He's sort of dropped hints, like there's this thing we have an understanding about, but we don't talk about it. I'm certain he at least knows about Rei being Sailor Mars, even if she hasn't told him outright." Usagi nodded. "I've suspected that he might. I know I should have asked Rei by now. I mean, if there's somebody else who knows our secret, we should all know about it, right? I just ..." "What?" Mamoru asked encouragingly. Usagi sighed. "I guess I was afraid of giving Rei an excuse for ending her relationship with Yuichirou." "Security risk?" "Yeah. I want nothing more than to say 'tell him', and I would if I was sure she really would do it. It would be the best thing for them, no more secrets. I mean look at Ami and Ryou. Knowing about her didn't drive him away, it brought them closer. But Rei is so stubborn, she might just do the opposite and send him away. She's so much into that stoic self- sacrifice thing. Sometimes it gets me mad." "Looks that way." Usagi blinked, realizing she had gone off on a tangent. She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry." She gave him a little peck on the cheek. "We were talking about our wedding." "Oh yeah, I forgot." Usagi had run out of places that wouldn't hurt much. She got a satisfying noise out of him. "That was harsh. Anyway, I sort of like the idea of having a best man who at least kind of knows who we are. It'll make it seem just a little more like a royal wedding." "In that case, I approve. Anything else we need to decide on tonight?" "Nothing in particular, why?" "Making all these important decisions is hard work. I'd like to do something easier right now." "Like what?" Usagi grinned. She reached over and took the little package from the table, the one she had picked up from the photo shop today. "Like deciding which of these pictures from our trip I'll be putting in our album." They spent a little while going through the pictures. They were mostly group shots, but Usagi had managed to get a few good candid shots. What she lacked in skill with the camera she more than made up for in good timing, she seemed to have a knack for catching people in embarrassing moments. The one of Setsuna had them both rolling on the floor. Mamoru wiped a tear from his eye, his laughing fit done with. "Heh ... whoa ... okay, how did she get so sopping wet?" Usagi pulled herself up against the couch, also still breathing heavily. "Well ... you see ... she didn't seem to quite understand what a dolphin show entailed. She sat in the first row." "So you just let her do that." "Hey, I was there with her, I got just as wet." "I'll bet you weren't in a straw hat and sarong, though." Usagi grinned. "Nope, I was in my swimsuit, and the camera was in a waterproof fanny pack." "You're evil." "But it was for the sake of a great shot. I take my art seriously." "Yeah. Can you imagine what she'd pay for the negatives?" Usagi sniffed. "And you say I'm evil." "You know, Usako, I'd be careful about pulling this sort of thing on a woman who can change the course of history any time she wants to." "Oh, she was a good sport about it." "I don't know, she looks about ready to kill somebody there." "A few seconds later she was laughing as hard as everybody else. Anyway, that one is definitely going into the album." "I wondered why this table was suddenly looking so cluttered." Mamoru reached over and picked up the big photo album. "You were planning to update the album." "I've already been rearranging the pictures a bit." "Oh?" Mamoru put the album on his lap, and let it fall back to lean against the coffee table, angling it for them both to see. He flipped open to the first page. "Well, it already looks different." "You know what this is, right?" "Hmmm, let's see ..." On the left was a blown up shot of Mamoru in the green jacket and black turtleneck he usually wore around the time they first met. On the right were four regular sized pictures, one each of Ami, Rei, Makoto and Minako. They all appeared to be from their junior high days. "Oh, I get it. That's the first picture you ever took of me." "Bingo. And those are the first pictures I ever took of Ami, Rei, Mako-chan and Minako." "Well, I know the story behind mine, you caught me unawares in front of the Crown arcade ... " "You wouldn't exactly have posed for me back then." "... but what about these ones?" Usagi pointed at the one where Ami was about to take a bite out of a hamburger. "That was a couple of days after I found out Ami was Sailor Mercury. I was so happy to find another Sailor Senshi, I really wanted to celebrate. So I took her on the Usagi special Tokyo shop-'til-you-drop tour. I knew how smart she was, I was kind of afraid she'd be stuck up and everything. But she was so sweet, she didn't even make fun of me buying only manga at the bookstore. I think Luna was pretty relieved to find her, she got along with Ami a lot better than she got along with me. I know it was mostly my fault, I feel kind of bad about it now." "You really were a terror then." "Hey, I can still be a terror when I want to be." "Tell me about it." Usagi decided to let that one slide. She pointed to a picture of Rei in her shrine maiden robes, holding the broom with which she waged her never ending battle against the leaves of Hikawa shrine. "This one was just a day before I found out that Rei was Sailor Mars." "Before? I thought you two had just met then, why do you have a picture of her?" "Well ..." Usagi could feel herself blushing. She looked down, started playing nervously with the end of one of her long pigtails that lay spilled all over the carpet. "Back then I sort of had a crush on her." "Now that I find hard to believe." "Why is that so hard to believe?" Usagi shot back. She knew she was overreacting, he really wasn't teasing her. "Usako, remember, I was *there* when she awoke as Sailor Mars. You two were like oil and water right from day one." "Well, yeah, we would fight a lot back then. But I still thought she was the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. I still think so. I mean, now she's even more gorgeous. I guess that was why I always felt so jealous whenever she got within a mile of you." Mamoru nodded. "I understand, Usako." Usagi felt suddenly apprehensive at hearing his serious tone. "You do?" "Of course." Mamoru took both her hands in his own, looked intently into her eyes. "You were afraid I would take her away from you. I understand that now." It took a moment for the penny to drop. Usagi narrowed her eyes. "Mamo-chan, do you enjoy having me hit you?" He just grinned. "I'll take that as a yes ..." She folded her arms, turned away from him and stuck her nose up. "Which means I won't." "You won't?" "Nope." She turned back to face him. "I'll just tickle you to death." She pounced. Pinned between the sofa and the table, with the big album still sitting on his lap, he had nowhere to manoeuvre. She knew from long experience exactly where to hit. She stopped once he started begging for mercy. "You had enough now?" Mamoru just grinned and nodded, still panting. "Let that be a lesson to you. There are some things you just don't joke about." "Sorry." He was still smiling, but he sounded like he meant it. He brought the album back down off the table, where he had somehow managed to slide it while under attack. "So why don't we continue our trip down memory lane." Usagi took note of how Mamoru had managed to deftly change the subject again. She felt more than a little grateful. She slid next to him again, and he wrapped an arm around her. She pointed to a picture of Makoto smiling uncomfortably at the camera, and holding onto a tray on which was an exquisite cake. "That's from the first time Mako-chan invited me over to her apartment. It was a few days after we'd found out she was Sailor Jupiter. She said she'd make anything I wanted for dinner, but somehow all I could think of was cake. She made a nice dinner too, but she really went all out with the cake. I thought it was so pretty, I just had to take a picture. I wanted to take some more of her to commemorate the event. But she was a bit camera shy, so I ended up just taking a couple of pictures of her place with plants everywhere. I was really surprised. I mean, everybody had her pegged as this tomboy troublemaker. I knew the troublemaker part must be a lie, I could see how nice she really was. But then I went to her place and she had this kitchen with professional stuff right out of a TV cooking show, and all these beautiful plants, even orchids and things." "And her restaurant looks even greener," Mamoru said. "Boy, you got that right!" Usagi would swear she had spent half her parents' money just filling the place with plants. "Ami tells me she's going to be getting even more with all this money she's making. Honestly, her waiters will be spending half their time watering plants! Ami even suggested she design some sort of automated watering system for the place, can you believe that?" "I'll bet that got thumbs down." "You'd better believe it." Usagi closed her eyes, raised an index finger and recited. "'Watering plants is an act of love. You can't deny them love any more than you can deny them water,' to paraphrase." Mamoru chuckled. "Good impression, you're getting better." "Thanks. I do a passable Ami too." "Your Minako is still the best." Usagi wrinkled her nose. "Well, that's no effort at all." Mamoru pointed at the picture of Minako in her school uniform, mugging for the camera and flashing her trademark V for victory sign. "And that's one girl who's not camera shy." "I don't think I've ever gotten a candid shot of her, I swear she can smell a camera a mile away. This one was at least a couple of weeks after we'd met her, maybe longer. I guess around that time, I wasn't much into taking pictures." "That's understandable," Mamoru said gently. Usagi smiled, wanting to show him it wasn't a problem talking about it. "We actually did have a sort of party for her just a couple of days after we wasted the Starlight Tower. To welcome the newest Sailor Senshi and all. I was still upset over your having been captured by Beryl, but I more or less forced myself to go. I actually managed to have a good time, it really made me feel better. Now I wish I did have a picture from that party." "I had thought she was the one you had a crush on." "It was more like hero worship. I mean, when I found out she had really been Sailor V, I just flipped out. Having her with us, I thought now we can do anything. I think that's what kept me going, all that time when Beryl had you. And she was just so nice to me too, doing everything she could to cheer me up. Here we had just met, and she was already treating me like her oldest and dearest friend." She sniffed. "Aw jeez, there I go again." She reached up and wiped a tear away. Mamoru put the album up on the table. He leaned over and gave her a kiss. "Why don't we put your new pictures in there some other time?" She smiled at him. "Sure." She felt silly, getting worked up like this. She had actually wanted to show him the next page, where she had arranged her earliest pictures of Haruka, Michiru, Setsuna and Hotaru. But maybe this wasn't the time. Mamoru gently stroked her cheek. "You okay now?" "Uh huh. You know what I was thinking?" "Tell me." "None of them ever asked to be Senshi, maybe Pluto didn't either. But they've all given up so much of their lives for me, even died for me. I've always wished I could give something back to them. Now I finally feel like I have given something back." Mamoru frowned, looking puzzled. "Finally?" "This world that I've helped to protect, that we've all helped to protect, is finally letting them find some happiness. It's letting them all follow their dreams. It seems odd to say, but when Makoto's restaurant suddenly became a big success, I just thought that's the reason for everything we've gone through." "It's not odd at all, Usako." He moved his hand down to her neck and shoulder, caressing, almost massaging. It felt good. "You're right, that is the reason for everything we've endured. So that we can pursue our dreams, at least for a little while." *At least for a little while.* It seemed that sort of caveat was being added to everything lately. But Mamoru was kissing her again, and she just lost herself in the moment. He leaned back and smiled. "You about ready for bed?" "Mmm Hmmm. Bed sounds like a fine idea." ***** "Akechi, you'll wear a hole in our carpet," Shoji said. "Why don't you sit down and finish your drink?" Akechi complied, sitting on the edge of the couch, barely making contact with it. He grabbed the gin and tonic Shoji had made him and tossed back what was left of it. "Didn't mean that literally." "Dammit, they were fucking *aliens*," Akechi spat, mostly to himself, not looking at Shoji. "Yeah, I saw." "Why are fucking aliens suddenly after us?" "We've been over this, Akechi. I haven't got a clue." They sat in silence while Akechi fumed. He'd practically been bouncing off the walls since they 'ported back to the apartment Shoji shared with Yui. As for Yui, she had stayed in the living room just long enough to squeeze the Soul Icon into the crystal that now stood on the mantlepiece, glowing brightly. Then she had gone to take a bath to calm herself down. Shoji had some idea what would calm Akechi down, he was just waiting for the right time to suggest it. "I still don't like keeping this from the Matriarch," Akechi said, glaring at him. "She may know something about them, something that would help us." "And what would the Matriarch know about aliens? She's not a goddess or anything, Akechi. We tell her, she'll probably just get nervous and shut us down." "Yeah? Well right now that sounds like a *damned* good idea to me!" Akechi said, punctuating his outburst with a finger thrust at Shoji. Shoji debated offering another drink, decided against it. That would just make him more argumentative. "Okay, let's review." He stood up from the oversized armchair that he and Yui could squeeze into when they wanted. He paced as he talked, thinking that might mitigate Akechi's desire to do the same. "We've got three aliens. One of them knows how to cloak and how to levitate. You saw hints of it before they landed, would have seen it earlier if you knew what to look for. So their cloak's not that good, certainly not as good as yours." "Mine's not a cloak, technically speaking." Good, he was thinking technical now. "Granted. It still works better than theirs, you got the drop on them no problem." "For what good it did." "Okay, that's the next point. At least two of them have shields. And not very good ones either." "Good enough. I gave that guy everything I had, his brain should have been blood porridge." "For all we know, it was. Just because you didn't see blood gushing out of every orifice doesn't mean he survived. We may have dropped one of them already." "And how many more will come next time? Maybe they were just playing for time until more of their friends could arrive. What he said suggested they're part of some big organization, a caste or something." "Yeah, and maybe they've got a star fleet parked behind the moon. Whatever. The solution is simple. From now on you stick close to us. Any nasties show up, Yui drops the Soul Icon and we 'port out." "Can she do that? Just stop cold?" "She's gotten a lot better control over it now. Better at masking it too. I bet next time, they won't even see it happening, whoever in hell they are." "Well, they sure saw it this time. Maybe they've got a surveillance network or something." "Could just as easily be a halfways decent sensitive. Maybe that wimpy broad is their eyes and ears. We take her out, they're deaf and dumb. Anyway, all in all they're not so shit hot. If what we saw is the best they have to offer, they're little more than a nuisance." "How many more of these things do you figure we need to get?" Shoji shrugged. "We'll just get one at a time. We go to the cave, Yui sees what she can see. She thinks we need another, we get another. We'll sit tight for at least a week, regardless. Sound good?" After a moment, Akechi nodded. He looked a bit calmer now. Maybe time to suggest something that he will like. Shoji walked over and sat down beside him. "You know what I think you need right now?" "What?" Shoji clapped a hand on his shoulder. "I think you need to go out on a hunt." The wild look flashed in Akechi's eyes. Shoji felt him shiver. Yes, it looked as if he liked that idea. He smiled. "You want me to get Yui to 'port you somewhere?" "No." He stood up. "Think I'll just head straight out. Could probably do with a walk afterwards." "That's the spirit." Shoji walked him to the door. Akechi's apartment was just a couple of kilometres away from here, after he was done with his business he could walk there easily. Would probably do him some good, work off the nervous tension. "Oh, and Akechi?" Akechi rose from doing up his shoes. "Yeah?" "As usual, take a bit of a walk *before*, too." "I know. See you later." Shoji winked. "Have a good one." He sighed and walked back to the living room. Akechi was getting a bit lazy, some of his victims where being found just a little too close to here. Ancients read the newspapers too, one of them might put two and two together. That would be all they needed. But Akechi's survival instinct was good, and discretion was his middle name. He would probably be okay. He plopped back down in his big easy chair and took another good gulp from his own drink. "Lord, what a day." This was the first chance he'd had to sit down and think since they 'ported back here. It had been damned close. He had gotten a good look at the big guy's aura. He was no spring chicken, that's for sure. If he'd decided to just cut loose instead of stop to challenge them, they would have been toast. And he was good. Knew how to use his powers. Had brought up that shield in nothing flat. In a straight out fight, Shoji had no doubt that guy would give him a run for his money. The other ones hadn't even gotten a chance to strike back, no telling what they were capable of. And like Akechi had repeatedly reminded him, they were *aliens*. Well, as long as they were careful and on their guard, worst case would be they might have to 'port out of a place and leave the Soul Icon behind. It would still be okay. Shoji heard the door to the bathroom open. He got up and met Yui just as she was entering the living room. She had on a fluffy bathrobe and slippers, and a towel around her hair. She smiled as he approached. But he could see that she was still a bit upset. He bent down and gave her a kiss. **Hi sweetie. Feeling better now?** **I guess so. Did Akechi leave?** **Yeah. Wanted to go hunting.** **Oh.** **Let's relax for today. We can wait until tomorrow to take the Soul Icon over to the cave.** He led her over to the big easy chair. Instead of squeezing in beside him, she sat up on his lap, wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head against his. **Senpai, I was really scared.** **That was sort of a surprise, wasn't it?** He pulled her closer. **You did a really good job. Got us out of there in nothing flat.** **Why were aliens trying to protect a temple?** **Who knows. Maybe they're Galactic Patrol, Esper division or something.** **Do you think they'll try and hunt us down?** **Can't. We got away clean, they haven't a clue where we are.** She was silent for a moment. **I hope we don't need to do this again.** **If we do, there are precautions we can take, to make sure we're not caught by surprise again. We can talk about that later.** **They're not just animals. They're like us.** **Maybe, maybe not. Just because they've got a bag of tricks doesn't make them like us. They didn't even try to use telepathy. They could be using spells or just some weird alien technology.** She moved away just enough to be able to look at him. **But they're strong. I don't want to do this again with just the three of us. I think we need help.** **Yui, we talked about this. If we tell the Matriarch we ran into some opposition, she'll probably tell us to cease and desist. And if we told her we'd met aliens, she'll probably insist on a mindscan to corroborate the story. That's the last thing we need.** **I didn't mean to tell grandma Himiko. I can talk to one of my friends.** **Who did you have in mind?** **Hitomi.** After taking a moment to mentally kick himself, Shoji grinned from ear to ear. **Now why didn't I think of that?** ***** Minako flipped through the script until she got to her part. Typically, they had let her pick it up just a day before they were supposed to do the taping. It was just another cameo role, so there wasn't much to memorize. Still, it was annoying. She would definitely have a talk with her manager in the morning. It was getting darker now, so she reached over and flipped on the lamp on the bedside table. She fluffed up the big pillow she had been leaning against and got herself comfortable. For some reason she suddenly noticed the familiar bedspread. She smiled. She was probably a bit old to have a bed with a bunch of little pink hearts all over it. But they had done a photo session of her in here about a year back, and the fans had eaten it up. Even had a set of pyjamas made up that matched the bedspread. The same set she was wearing now. She looked at it and sighed. Just too adorable for words. "Yep, that's me alright." She picked up the script and started reading through it. She had just read through the whole thing for the third time when a white cat jumped in through the open window. "Hey, Artemis." "Hey, Minako." He jumped up onto the bed. "Another cameo appearance?" "Sunset Dreams." "Hey, I've even heard of it." "Smart aleck." It was a television drama of rural life thirty years ago. Nostalgic shows had become very popular in the past couple of years. "I would ask you to help me practice the part, but I need another female for the scene." "Luna's out hunting." Minako's eyes narrowed. "Have you two been fighting again?" "Nothing like that. We're a good team, but solitary hunting has its appeal too. Anyway, she prefers birds and I prefer mice, so sometimes we have to just agree to disagree." "Oh, ick." "Hey, we're predators. Deal with it." They both smiled at the running joke. Luna had moved in with them at about the same time that Usagi moved in with Mamoru. Since then, the two of them had been getting in touch with their inner felines, as it were. Minako almost never had to feed them anything. Which was just as well, since she was away often as not. Her mother hadn't been happy about the second cat, but since they had proved to be very little trouble, it was more or less working out. "So then what have you been up to?" "Just snoozing. I got woken up by something weird. Did you hear those two crows that just flew overhead?" "Boy, did I ever. They sounded ticked." "That they were. The weird part was, they were squawking about an earthquake at their temple." *At a temple?* Minako put down her script. "Artemis, I didn't feel any tremor." "Neither did ..." his voice trailed off. "You know which temple?" He named it. Minako threw off her covers, sent Artemis jumping. "Minako, wha-" "Hop on, we're going." Artemis didn't even hesitate. He was on her shoulder a second before she hopped onto the window sill. She leaped straight out, transformation wand in hand. She didn't even have to speak the words, a trick they had all learned from Pluto. By the power of her will, she transformed to Sailor Venus in midair. She rebounded off the brick fence below, and went bounding across the rooftops. When she started running lightly over a fence that bordered a commuter train line, Artemis, who was no longer having the wind knocked out of him by her prodigious leaps, shouted in her ear. "This isn't the quickest way." "It is if we hitch a ride." "You're not-" He was cut off by the whistle of the train that was coming up behind them. Venus had heard it as they approached the line, which had given her the idea. As it sped past them she leapt. It was still accelerating, going at only about half its top speed. So when she grabbed onto a handhold at the side of the roof it didn't quite feel like her arm had been pulled off. The train continued to accelerate. She turned to Artemis and grinned. "This train stops right by that temple. We'll be there in just a couple of minutes." Artemis just panted for a while. He looked kind of ill. "Venus, I am getting too old for this." "Oh, go ahead and tell me you don't love this." The look on his face softened. He smiled in a way she hadn't seen before. "Hey partner, you okay?" It was supposed to sound glib, but she found the question was genuine. "Minako, I haven't felt this alive in years." Minako's smile faded. "Artemis ..." "It's been a while since it was just you and me on the prowl." He winked. He too had tried to sound glib, but that same look was on his face, an odd mix of intensity and contentment. The look that said everything was right with the world. It was something they had never talked about, except as a casual joke. When Artemis had awakened her to her role as Sailor Venus, as far as they knew it had just been the two of them against the Dark Kingdom. Out of necessity, Artemis had thrown himself into the thick of the battles, as a vital extra set of eyes and ears, as an advisor, as a diversion, and sometimes even as a combatant. When she had linked up with the other Senshi, that had abruptly changed. The five Senshi could support and watch out for each other, for the most part Luna and Artemis never had to engage the enemy themselves. Somehow, it had never occurred to Minako that he might miss it. After a moment, she flashed him a wolf grin and winked back. "Yeah, it has been a long time. Too long." She reached over with her free hand and gave the fur on his head a good ruffle. Not that it did anything, the wind of their quick passage through the city was already tossing their hair all over the place. Artemis took a tighter grip, his claws digging into the fabric of her uniform. "So why exactly are we here, anyway?" "On a hunch. I figure whatever demolished those other shrines and temples we've been hearing about is doing the same to this one right now." "You figure we should call the others?" "It would be all over by the time they got here. Besides, it's just a hunch, I may be barking up a tree with no partridge in it." "Well, whatever the case, there's a slight flaw in your plan." "Flaw?" "This is an express train. It won't be stopping at the station you want, it goes right through." "That's no problem. We'll just jump off." "At a hundred kilometres per hour?" "Don't worry, just leave it to me. I'll improvise something." "I was afraid you'd say that." "Oops, looks like we're here." "Oh my Go-" Venus selected her target and leaped. In midair she conjured the Venus Love Me Chain. She took a millisecond to thank Pluto for teaching her to do this silently, it allowed her to do a really quick speed draw. And brother, she needed that right now. The chain caught the end of the streetlight post and they went sailing around it. They started executing a lovely spiral all around the post as Venus let out more of the chain and gravity angled it down. Suddenly some ancient American cartoon popped into Minako's head, and she felt compelled to sing out "Spiderman, Spiderman, Does whatever a spider can ..." "Minako are you cra-" The rest of Artemis' sentence came out as a grunt as Minako hit the ground running, letting her chain dissolve into the air. She was even running in the right direction. She grinned. *Sometimes I scare myself.* "Whoa, what a rush. You still with me partner?" "'A piece of him.'" "Huh?" "Nothing." "Heads up, we're almost there." Minako recognized the place, she had been here once before. It was on a lot barely big enough to contain the temple building and a small open plaza in front of it. She could see the high brick wall that enclosed the lot. It was hard to tell running at full speed with a gale force wind blowing by but she thought she heard something like a muffled explosion ahead. Suddenly a blizzard of colourful fireflies burst out from behind the wall, up into the twilight sky. "What the hell is that?" Artemis asked. "Let's go find out." A few more seconds and the wall was right before them. Not wanting to jump in blind, Venus decided to leap up onto the wall first. She took one look down into the temple grounds and thought *This must be the place.* To her right there was a roiling cloud of dust where the temple building used to be. The swarm of lights that had surged up into the air was now rapidly drifting down. It gathered into a smaller, tighter swarm as it approached the ground. It drifted straight down into the arms of a young girl standing in the middle of the plaza. Somehow, Venus understood that the girl had just stolen something vital and sacred as a human soul. There was a red-haired man standing beside her. Except for the fact that they had somehow just demolished a building from where they stood, the two of them looked quite normal. There was a ghost standing a few meters from them, to the left. Or what certainly looked like a ghost. It was a slim young woman with very pale skin and white hair, wearing a flowing white dress. There was a white dove perched on each of her shoulders. Only her tinted glasses spoiled the effect. She appeared to be casually watching the other two. Venus had seen enough. "Artemis, eyes open," she said softly. "Got it." He leaped off her shoulder and ran a couple of meters down the top of the wall. With her eyes and ears in place, Venus was ready. She leaped off the wall and landed in the plaza just a few meters from the couple who were standing together. "Hold it right there!" They started at the sound of her voice. The young girl holding the portable light show between her hands took a step back. She looked frightened. The man stepped in front of her, dropped down to a crouch, watching her warily. Venus spared just a quick glance at the ghost lady. She regarded Venus with mild surprise. Her doves appeared a bit agitated now, but she just stood in place. "I am Sailor Venus," she announced. "You just destroyed a holy place for the last time. Whatever you just took from it, you'll put it back right now if you want to live." They just stood there. Maybe a demonstration was required. A Crescent Beam past his left ear, perhaps? "Behind you!" Venus was in the air before Artemis even finished shouting. Her leap took her right back onto the wall. Almost. She staggered for a moment, regained her balance. There was a man standing right where she had been. *Where the hell did he come from?* She locked eyes with the man ... and a shiver went down her spine. She had seen that look in other eyes. The eyes of demons consumed with a madness that could only be quenched with blood. As if on some signal, the man backed away from her, towards the other two. The ghost lady was also converging on the couple. Still, none of them had said anything. The girl holding their prize certainly wasn't moving to comply with Venus' demand. "I warned you," she said in a clear voice. She brought one arm up and the Venus Love Me Chain once again spiralled around her. She sent it coiling at the man with the wild eyes. Him in particular she wanted to take out of action right now. A fireball cut through her chain, incinerating it. Venus threw up her arms in front of her. Running into the chain had dispersed the fireball, nothing but a hot wind blew by her. The red-haired man had another fireball held at the ready in one hand, but made no move to use it. She was gearing up to retaliate with the Love And Beauty Shock, when movement caught her eyes slightly to the left. The Ghost Lady's doves had left her and were flying straight at Venus. Except, they were no longer doves. As they flew at her they grew and transformed. They shrieked hideously, displaying rows of teeth along their grotesquely oversized beaks. Their eyes glowed red and their feet were growing into great shining claws. Their wingspan was now that of a large hawk, and still growing. "They're temple guardians!" Artemis shouted. *Temple guardians?* It was the term Artemis used to describe guardian spirits that would watch over holy places in animal form. Like Rei's two crows, Phobos and Deimos. Venus didn't have time to think. She conjured another Love Me Chain and sent it whipping out at the creatures. It connected with both of them, knocking them to the side. They shrieked in agony. They barely cleared the wall, but they did not go down. Far from it, they were already wheeling about to come in for another pass. No choice, she had to end this now. "Love and Beauty Shock!" She whipped her arm around behind her, casting the shimmering golden ball of energy out at them. Something made her deflect it at the last moment so that it only dealt them a glancing blow. But it was enough. They were knocked high in the air, straight over her head and back onto the temple grounds. They fell to the ground, limp as rag dolls. The grounds were deserted. "They all teleported out," Artemis explained. "Damn." She leaped down to where the two creatures had landed. Before her very eyes, they were shrinking, turning back into doves. They looked much the worse for wear. Artemis came padding along beside her. "What was that stuff about temple guardians?" She asked. "These two called out just before they started to transform. I recognized the voices." "You *recognized* them?" "Sure. I'm on a first name basis with most of the temple guardians in Tokyo, I'll have you know." "Great. So what were they saying?" "'Kill.'" Venus sighed. "Great company you keep." "They weren't under their own control. That woman all in white must have done something to them." "Well, they look to be in pretty rough shape. Damn, I should have called for backup after all. Mars or Saturn might be able to do something for them. Maybe I can still-" "Venus, to your left." Venus spun about, her power at the ready but held in check. There had been urgency in Artemis' tone, but no alarm. Potential threat, not immediate. Venus' first thought was to wonder how these three people had just appeared out of thin air. Her second thought was to wonder what planet they were from. The big man had slate grey skin with a pronounced sheen. He looked like a statue. It was his eyes she noticed right away, inky pools with no whites at all. There was nothing else she could put her finger on right now, but his face was somehow ... wrong. Her gut told her she was not looking at one of her own species. Incongruously, he was dressed as a buddhist monk. He raised his hand and spoke with a voice that was soft but deep and powerful. "No harm intended, warrior. We saw enough to know you were trying to defend this holy place." Venus relaxed from her combat stance ... a little bit. "And you are ... ?" "Thetan of the Warrior Caste." He bowed deeply. The other man took a step forward. His skin and eyes were the same as the first man's, but that was where the similarity ended. He was almost as tall as the first, but thin, almost looking emaciated. Instead of being bald, he had blue-black wiry hair, cut very short. Venus wondered if he was suffering from some disease. What she could see of his skin - his face and hands - was covered with what looked like thick dark red blood vessels, almost like he had an incredible case of varicose veins. It was hard to tell since she was seeing him face on, but he looked to be hunchbacked. He wore a very ordinary sports jacket, shirt and slacks. "K'Theelm of the Engineer Caste." He bowed low. The woman stepped forward. Shorter, grey skin a bit lighter, same bottomless dark eyes. Her face was lovely, but like the others inhuman in a way she couldn't quite articulate. What Venus noticed right away was her hair, a shocking cascade of impossibly bright scarlet that spilled around her shoulders like a lava flow. She was in a pleated skirt and white blouse that just looked too ordinary for her. "Jeneth of the Healer Caste." She bowed. *Okaaay ...* Their tone was polite and formal. Venus decided to keep things at that level for now, so as best to keep her guard up without giving offense. She relaxed more from her combat stance, stood up to her full height. "Under the protection of Venus, planet of beauty, I am the Sailor Senshi, Sailor Venus." They all looked a bit startled by her self introduction. The big man, who Venus had already pegged as their leader, looked to each side of him, exchanging a glance with one then the other of his companions. As one, they all went down on one knee and bowed their heads. "We greet you, Avatar," Thetan said gravely. "We thank the Avatars for their role in defeating Galaxia and her forces of chaos. By your efforts, we have been able to life peacefully within your realm. We are deeply grateful." Venus was quite taken aback by this performance. She was a bit disoriented, trying to assess the implications of what he was saying. "You're ... welcome." They did not move. "Uh ... you can, you know, get up. We really don't stand on ceremony." They stood up. There was what Venus would describe as awe in their alien faces, as if they were in the presence of a Goddess. Venus had mixed feelings about that. Jeneth took a step forward, and with what looked like great effort met her eyes. "Avatar, by your leave-" "You can just call me Venus," she said, trying to show a friendly smile. This formality was getting on her nerves already. "Ahem." Venus turned to look at Artemis. He appeared a bit annoyed. "Oh, sorry. Everyone, this is my friend and advisor, Artemis." He smiled at the woman. "I'm very pleased to meet you." Jeneth took a moment to realize that her jaw had practically dislocated itself open. No talking cats where she came from, it would seem. But her look of shock quickly dissolved, to be replaced with one of delight and wonder. "Likewise I am very pleased to meet you, Artemis." Venus smiled down at her partner. *You old smoothie.* Jeneth turned her attention back to Venus. "Venus, if you will permit, I believe I can help these two stricken guardian spirits." Venus cursed herself, she had forgotten about that altogether. Too many things happening at once. Jeneth had said she was from the Healer Caste, whatever that meant. There didn't seem to be much choice. "Okay, go ahead." She took a step back and Jeneth approached closer, went to kneel down before the two doves. The two men stood where they were, as if giving their companion space for her work. Venus crouched down a couple of meters away, not wanting to interfere but curious to see what Jeneth would do. The woman laid one delicate grey-skinned black-nailed hand lightly over each dove's still form and closed her eyes. Suddenly a delicate blue glow like a penumbra was dancing around the two birds. Venus had seen something like this before, when Hotaru would use her own healing power to treat a cut or scrape on one of the Senshi after a training session. She had felt that healing touch more than once herself, warm and soothing like no balm or medicine could ever be. After a minute or so, the glow subsided and Jeneth withdrew her hands. She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, her body visibly relaxing. She opened her eyes and smiled at Venus. "They will live." Venus let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, I thought I'd killed them." "We were able to witness the end of your battle. I saw how you deflected your attack at the last moment, that is no doubt what saved them." "It was Artemis who warned me what they really were." She stood up and looked down at the cat, suddenly remembering something. "But I thought you said those two crows we heard were this temple's guardians." "They are. These two are a long ways from home. That girl in white must have found them there, then put them under her spell or whatever it was." "It will likely be a couple of days before they can fly home," Jeneth said. "They need no further treatment, but they need food and rest." "Not a problem," Artemis said. "Birds at temples have no problem getting fed, and guardians look after each other, regardless of species. The crows will probably be back soon, they'll watch over these two." The doves were already beginning to stir, showing signs of life. Venus looked around the temple grounds. No other sign of life. But that could change quickly. "We should probably get out of here, the fireworks are likely to attract attention." The big man took a couple of steps closer. "Your pardon, Venus, but is it your intention to avoid the local authorities?" Venus sighed. "I take it you're not from around here." "We are from a different world, yes." Well, that settled that part. Venus could save the million other questions for later. "Well, just take my word for it, we don't want to have to explain to people just what happened here." Venus grinned. "Not that I know much about it myself, I was hoping you might be able to tell me more at some point." "Very little, I'm afraid," Thetan said, bowing as if in apology. "I can take us all from here unseen," K'Theelm said, stepping up beside his companion. Venus frowned. "Excuse me?" "Well ..." K'Theelm seemed to be at a loss for words. "Perhaps I could quickly demonstrate." There was a shimmer around him, and suddenly he just wasn't there. All she could see was a sort of ripple in the air, like a heat shimmer. It rose into the air. Had she not already been looking right at it, she was sure she would have missed it. Suddenly K'Theelm was floating a couple of meters above the ground. "I can carry us all within this cloak if you wish." Venus thought about this for a second. Her instincts were telling her to trust these people. And their actions so far had done nothing to contradict her feelings. She had her own ways of making a discrete exit, but this looked even better. And she didn't want to risk losing contact with these three, something told her that she really needed to talk with them. She made her decision. "Okay, what do I do?" K'Theelm floated back down to the ground. "Just stand beside me. When you tell me you are ready, you will feel a sensation of falling and we will rise into the air. Nothing more." Sounded simple enough. "Artemis." The white cat leaped up onto her shoulder, and she walked up next to K'Theelm. "Ready when you are." The other two joined them. The air around them shimmered, and as K'Theelm had warned Venus felt a moment of vertigo as the ground dropped from under her feet. It was very similar to what she felt during a teleport with the other Sailor Senshi. They rose a few meters into the air. "Is there a particular place you wish us to take you?" K'Theelm asked. "Uh ..." Venus was having trouble keeping her feet under her, her body seemed to want to go horizontal. It was distracting. "Venus, allow me." Jeneth extended her hand. Venus took it. With her other hand, Jeneth took Venus very lightly by the waist and slowly got her back into position. Venus felt compelled to wrap her other arm around Jeneth's shoulder, she was still a bit uncomfortable with this levitation business. She hoped she wasn't being too familiar with the strange woman. But the healer just smiled and held onto her. "Thanks," Venus said to her. "We should go somewhere we can talk in private." "Our apartment is about four kilometres away," Jeneth said. Venus' uncertainty about flying such a distance must have shown on her face. "It will only take a few minutes, and it's quite safe. K'Theelm took us safely all the way from our own planet." "You flew to Earth like *this*?" Jeneth seemed puzzled by the question. "How else?" "You don't have a spaceship or something?" "No, I'm afraid not." "We had to leave our planet in a hurry," K'Theelm explained. "There was no time to acquire more comfortable transportation." He sounded like he was apologizing. This was fascinating, but Venus wanted to get ground back under her feet as soon as possible. "That sounds fine." By the time they arrived at their destination, Venus had changed her mind about levitation. She decided it's the only way to fly. Before they sat down to talk, she extracted a promise from K'Theelm to fly her up over Tokyo Tower sometime. ***** Agent Smith walked up to the big set of ornate dark wooden double doors and waited. Just as the sweep second hand on his watch approached twelve, he knocked lightly three times. The Director always demanded punctuality, and always got it. "Come in," a barely audible voice said from the other side of the thick doors. Smith opened one of the doors, stepped through, and closed it behind him. He turned to face into the room and stood at parade rest. The room was quite dark, lit only by a desk lamp and two lights on the walls that looked like they had started their lives as gas lamps. The room was full of dark mahogany furniture, shelves full of old books and red leather high back chairs. But for the electric lights, it may not have changed much in a hundred years or more. The man behind the great mahogany desk smiled and nodded. "Agent Smith." "Director." "Please, have a seat." "Thank you, sir." He walked over and sat in the chair closest to the Director's desk. The Director closed the file he had been reading from and placed it on top of another file, the only two items marring the bare surface of his massive desk. He laid his reading glasses on the desk and leaned back in his own old leather chair. Smith had not seen the Director in almost a year, having just returned to New York from a long assignment in England. He seemed to be wearing the same suit he had been a year ago. Probably the same one he wore twenty years ago. The cut of the suit could have been from a hundred years ago. The Director only ever changed things that needed changing. "Have you read the report from the Tokyo office that I had sent to your desk?" "Yes sir." As always, the Director didn't waste time on small talk. "Could you find any fault with their analysis?" "No sir. Agent Takada is reluctant to draw conclusions from these events. Quite properly, I believe. The only thing that is certain is that the various incidents in question are related." "You think Agent Takada qualified to make that judgement?" "Yes sir. I learned a fair amount from him even five years ago, when I was studying in Japan. He is eminently qualified to perform such analysis." The Director took just a moment to digest that, his face expressionless. "The day before yesterday, I received a telephone call from Agent Takada. It seems that since he sent that report, two more incidents have occurred. Two more temples in the Tokyo area have been destroyed under similar circumstances." "I see." "He now believes this matter merits our full attention, and has requested assistance. I have no reason not to agree with his assessment. Therefore, I am sending you to Japan. You will be leaving in the morning." "I understand." The Director didn't need to explain why he had been chosen. He had been in Japan for three years, both studying under members of older branches of the Order, and helping Takada in setting up the Tokyo office of the Hidden branch. He was the natural choice. "Before you leave, I have some background material for you to review." The Director pushed the two file folders closer to Smith. "The first is regarding a family of paranormals who live mostly on one of northern islands of Japan. Though he is reluctant to draw conclusions, as you say, Takada suspects their involvement. The second is a newer file, probably one you haven't seen yet. Takada submitted most of the material about three years ago. It's regarding some local urban legend, a group of vigilantes that we have very little solid information on. Takada said he cannot connect them to these incidents, but he did suggest anyone I send to him review the file. I've only glanced over it myself. Apparently it's a group of young women who show up in navy cadet uniforms or some such thing. Anyway, it's all in the file." The Director leaned forward against his desk. His poker face came off, his look of concern was plain. "I've got a bad feeling about this one, Smith. I don't like what's happening over there, and I want it stopped. I've already told Takada that I am authorizing the two of you to take whatever direct action is required to stop whoever is doing this. If we can't come to an understanding with them, that includes deadly force. And whatever backup you may need." The Director letting his guard down indicated to Smith that he was free to be candid. "I am puzzled about one thing, sir. These are hardly the most serious incidents to occur in Tokyo in recent years. Why the sudden concern?" "Like I said, I've got a bad feeling. Other reasons too. The older branches are in a frenzy over this. As you can imagine, they're rather sensitive about desecration of holy sites. I want the Hidden branch to be seen as taking direct action, it might calm them down a bit. The powers that be in Tokyo are pretty upset as well, I don't want them doing anything stupid." "I'll be using the usual cover?" "Naturally. Agent Takada will give you the details when you get there. I've also arranged to have your weapons shipped over, they should arrive no more than a day later than you do. It would take longer, but I can also have one of our new toys sent over if you think you'll need it." "I'd just as soon hold off on that, at least until I've had a look around there." Smith gestured at the file folders. "Any directives regarding contact with these groups?" "It seems Takada has had some contact with both of them, so ask his advice. Otherwise, your discretion. Any developments, let me know in no more than one day." "Understood." "Any other questions?" "No, sir." The director stood, indicating the meeting was over. Smith did likewise. In unison, the two men put their clenched right hands over their hearts and recited the pledge that all members of the Order had made in a hundred different languages since its beginnings, lost in the mists of time. "That life shall never perish." End Chapter 4 Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 5] Date: Mon, 05 Jan 1998 19:45:53 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- Secrets Chapter 5 - Refugees from the Stars "So what happened then?" Usagi asked. Minako had paused just long enough to take a bite from one of the cookies Makoto had brought to the meeting. "Then K'Theelm went to make tea, and we all sat down and talked. Say, these are really good, Mako- chan." "Thanks," Makoto said. She smiled. In the past, a comment like that in the middle of discussing Senshi business would have prompted Rei or Ami to chide her for not staying focused. But over the years, they had learned to tell when Minako was really letting her capricious nature get the better of her. They all sat on cushions around the long, low table. It was their usual meeting place, the dining room in the residence of Rei's shrine. The big room easily accommodated the seven of them. Plus of course the two cats. All the Senshi were here, except for Haruka and Michiru, who had gone overseas again. The sliding panels along both sides of the room were open so that the breeze would offer some relief from the heat of the summer evening. Everyone was dressed for the heat, mostly in shorts. The exception was Setsuna, who wore a suit with a knee length skirt. Makoto wondered how she could sit like that in this heat and not even sweat. Must take practice. Minako was continuing the story she had called this meeting for them to all hear. "So anyway, the first thing I asked them was where they come from. They said it was a planet really far away. It had some long name with no vowels that I couldn't even pronounce. They came here five years ago when their planet was destroyed by Galaxia." "Their whole planet was destroyed?" Usagi exclaimed. "That's horrible!" "It was only one of many," Setsuna reminded her. "Galaxia's armies of possessed Senshi probably laid waste all the inhabited planets in the galaxy save this one." "I know that!" Usagi said, visibly upset. "It's still horrible. They're all alone." Her face suddenly lit up. "But wait a minute, they're not alone! Galaxia sent all their friends back to their planet!" "Or is in the process of doing so," Setsuna said. "Minako, did you tell them anything about our battle with Galaxia?" Ami asked. Minako shook her head. "No. I sort of wanted to. I mean, like Usagi said, they think everyone else on their world is dead, right? I think they have a right to know what happened. But I didn't want to tell them anything much until we all had a chance to talk. About all I said was that there were other Senshi besides me and we defeated Galaxia four years ago." "So what have they been doing here for five years?" Rei asked. "Thetan is a monk at a Buddhist temple. It sounds kind of like he had a similar title on his home planet. But he also had some sort of combat training. Jeneth is working as a doctor." "You mean she's impersonating a doctor?" Ami asked. She sounded rather disturbed at the idea. "Well, she doesn't use any of our medicines. She heals sort of like Hotaru does, I saw her do it. She's just using her identity so that she can get into hospitals." "What sort of things does she cure?" Hotaru asked. "I really didn't ask. Sounds like terminal patients. Maybe cancer or something." "I'd have no idea how to do that ..." Hotaru said, her voice trailing off and her eyes becoming unfocused. Makoto got the impression that Hotaru wanted very much to meet this alien healer. "Anyway, K'Theelm is some sort of engineer, it sounds like he's mostly doing computer programming right now. That's how they pay for their apartment and stuff, he does programming jobs for people he talks to on the net. It's all done anonymously, he gets paid in binary cash." "Digital cash," Ami corrected her. "Right. So they were all living peacefully when suddenly Thetan goes to this temple that's been destroyed. He said he could tell right away that it was attacked by some sort of ESPer. K'Theelm has some scanner thing sort of like what Ami uses, and he used that to figure out that it was two or three ESPers. Well, it seems that Jeneth is a sort of ESPer too, so a few days ago she sensed this thing happening and they all flew out there. There were only three ESPers that time, but they had about as much luck as I did last night. The ESPers fought them off, then teleported away. Last night she sensed it again, but this time it was all over by the time they got there. All they saw was me shoot down those possessed temple guardian birds." "Who are doing just fine, by the way," Artemis interjected. "I thought you ate birds," Usagi said, looking at him suspiciously. Artemis flashed a toothy grin. "I do on occasion. But never guardian spirits. Professional courtesy. I can't vouch for Luna of course." Luna sniffed, turned her nose up. "I know enough not to hunt guardian spirits. Whatever do you take me for?" "So what was your impression of them?" Makoto asked Minako. "Well, it sounded like they were all being honest with me. I mean, they even showed me the human forms they've been using to disguise themselves. They've got this thing called a glamour that makes them look human. Sure would have fooled me, let me tell you. They even offered to work with us, help us catch these ESPers." "Do you really think they can help?" Rei asked. "Yeah, I think they would be a big help. Especially Jeneth, she can sense these attacks happening right across the city. I only found those ESPers because of dumb luck. Without Jeneth, we may never catch them, unless we can come up with some other way to detect these attacks." "Did they say whether they intended to continue hunting down the attackers?" Setsuna asked. "Well, actually, they *asked* me if they should. I mean, they were kind of apologetic about acting on their own like that, sort of like they needed our permission. They said they hadn't known whether the local Avatars were aware of what was going on." "Avatars?" Usagi asked. "That's me," Minako said, pointing at herself. "I mean, us. That's what they call us. I'm not clear on the details, but it sounds like on their planet there were people like us. Except everyone knew who they are, I guess sort of like the way we were in the Silver Millennium. And they didn't call them Sailor Senshi, they called them Avatars." "So in effect they were acknowledging your authority over them," Rei suggested. "Yeah, big time. I really felt like they would have done anything I asked them to. Anyway, about all I said was that they shouldn't act on their own until I meet with them again. I promised I'd call soon and arrange another meeting." "You think we should?" Usagi asked. "I mean, meet with them?" "Yeah. Like I said, they could be a big help. And I think we can trust them." "Well, they were right about the shrines that were destroyed," Rei said. "I was at the first one that was attacked. The one where Miho used to work. It's just like they said, it was like the soul was ripped out of the place. It was horrible." "Is Miho doing okay?" Makoto asked. She already knew the answer, but could sense Rei's temper rising to a slow boil. She was hiding it well, but Makoto could see she was upset over this business of the shrines. She needed to be diverted. Rei's expression softened, and she smiled a little. "Yes, she's very happy here. And she's worked out very well for us." It hadn't taken much for Rei to convince her grandfather that they should take the pretty young shrine maiden in at their own shrine, now that hers was gone. "Has it occurred to her where all those leaves go in the autumn?" Makoto said, gesturing out at the trees visible through the open sliding doors, the ones that surrounded the shrine. Rei's smile looked a little more genuine now. "I'll break it to her gently." "Did I miss something?" Usagi asked. "Ask me later," Rei said. "Okay, be inscrutable," Usagi said good naturedly. "Anyway, I agree with Minako, we should meet with these three people." "Should we all go?" Ami asked. "Hmmm ...." Usagi took a moment to consider that. "Well, the way Minako describes it, they were kind of intimidated when they found out she's a Senshi. Or ... what did they call her... an Avatar." "That's a fair statement," Minako agreed. "Then maybe just a few of us should go. I think they'd feel more comfortable. Minako and I should go. Rei, maybe you should come to." Rei nodded. "Agreed." There was no need to explain why. Rei had a sixth sense about people's character that none of them could match. "Princess, I'd like to go as well, if you'll permit." They all looked at Setsuna. Her expression was unreadable, just her usual implacable calm. Her tone had been pleasant but neutral. Usagi looked to be a bit surprised by the request. "Sure, that would be okay." "Maybe we should even go tonight, if everyone's willing," Minako suggested. Usagi shook her head. "Minako, you hardly got any sleep last night and you had a hard day at the studio. It can wait for tomorrow." Minako smiled. The empty pot of coffee behind her was mute testament to what was keeping her awake. She looked grateful, and not inclined to argue. "Okay. Jeneth said if we gave her a few hours notice she would treat us to a meal. Their dining room would be a little tight for seven, but not too bad." "Oh, then lets definitely make it a dinner date!" Usagi said, her face suddenly lit up. "Maybe she makes exotic foreign dishes." "Usagi, she's from another *planet*," Rei said wearily. "We'd better all hope she sticks with domestic cuisine." They both showed their tongues at each other briefly, and everyone else laughed. Their legendary raspberry duels of earlier days had gradually evolved into this slightly more civilized form. "Does six tomorrow sound fine?" Minako asked. The other three indicated it was. "Then I'll give Jeneth a call." "You can use the phone in the living room," Rei said. She stood up. "I'll walk you there. Oh, and you had probably better transform before you call. Your voice is different when you're Sailor Venus. I'll make sure nobody interrupts you." "Oh, I forgot!" Usagi said. "We'll all be going there as Sailor Senshi." "Well of course," Rei said. "They're expecting to see Sailor Senshi, we can't very well go there like this." "I know that," Usagi said indignantly. "How am I supposed to sit down to dinner with those great huge wings on my back?" Rei sighed heavily. "We'll put you at one end of the table and the big guy at the other end. For the love of all the Kami, just don't ask them to show you around their apartment, you'd end up knocking everything over." ***** Eiheiji temple was a long way from Tokyo. Even though it was one of the most famous temples in Japan, somehow Shoji had never managed to make it out here before. Despite himself, he found that he really liked the place. You certainly couldn't ask for a better venue. The sprawling temple complex was spread out along the steep slope of a mountain. The temple buildings were all surrounded by big, ancient trees which hid any other sign of civilization. Walking up and down the covered stairways that led to the various buildings in the complex was like walking through history. Some of these buildings looked a thousand years old. Others looked like they had been put up yesterday. He could hear a chorus of voices chanting nearby, as services were conducted. Elsewhere, tour guides recounted the long history of the temple, in at least three different languages that Shoji had heard. The whole thing gave the impression of a work in progress, a truly living place of worship and enlightenment. But maybe not for long. After a little more wandering, he met up with Akechi and Hitomi again. They were leaning on the railing of one of the covered wooden walkways that connected the different buildings. They were looking out at a great oak tree that hugged the rocky slope above them. Shoji followed their gaze. In a moment he found what they were looking at. A squirrel had locked eyes with Hitomi. It looked like she had it under her spell. Shoji just kept his distance, not wanting to disturb her. A couple of groups of tourists walked by, oblivious to what the strange white-haired girl was doing. After a couple of minutes, the squirrel turned and ran down the branch on which it had been perched. It scampered down the trunk of the great oak and hopped across the rocks that led the few meters down to the walkway. It jumped up to the walkway and shimmied up one of the ancient wood posts that held the open roof up. It ran along the balcony railing, straight into Hitomi's outstretched hand. "Hello, little one," Hitomi said to the animal, which was up on its hind legs in her palm, once again locking eyes with her. She held out her other hand, and the squirrel jumped over onto it. It went up on its hind legs again, staring up at her. Then it jumped back into her other hand, did the same. It kept doing this, over and over, as fast as it could, as if under some strange compulsion. Shoji heard Akechi chuckle lightly. He smiled. Besides Yui and him, 'Tomi was about the only one he knew who could make Akechi do that. "Having fun?" Shoji asked as he approached them. Hitomi looked over at him and smiled in greeting. She was in a white dress and white sneakers, as usual. About the only part of her that wasn't a shade of white was her round wire rimmed glasses. They were tinted blue, to slightly soften the colour of her irises, colored red by her albinism. She was a similar build to Yui, just a bit taller. She wasn't exactly pretty, but her face had character, Shoji had always liked it. As did Akechi, obviously. The two of them weren't exactly an item, but they got along very well together. Which for both of them was an achievement. Hitomi glanced back at the squirrel. It immediately scampered up her arm and perched on her shoulder. She promptly ignored it. "So I take it Yui isn't done yet?" "I looked in on her about ten minutes ago. She's still at it." Which meant she was still sitting cross-legged in front of that huge statue of the Buddha, eyes clenched shut, trying to get in touch with the temple's life force. "That makes it nearly two hours now," Akechi noted. "Not a very good sign." Shoji sighed. "No, it's not. She thought it might just be because this place is so spread out, but I doubt that. It's something different." "She said she felt a very strong life force here," Hitomi said. "Even I feel it." "Feeling it is one thing, locking onto it is another," Shoji said. "It was almost getting easy for her, with those places in Tokyo," Hitomi said. "You call that easy?" Akechi asked, indignant. Hitomi smiled up at him. "I mean, before the weirdos turned up." Yes, the weirdos. That Sailor Senshi showing up out of the blue had really spooked Yui. Which is what had led them all the way over here to Fukui prefecture. Yui had never been here before, so teleportation was out of the question. They had taken Shoji's car over here and checked in to a hotel, making a trip out of it. Shoji had quite liked the idea. With Yui 'porting them all over Tokyo all the time, he didn't get much chance to do any serious driving, except when he and Yui would just cruise around for fun. And if they could take a Soul Icon from the temple over here, maybe there would be fewer weirdos to bother them than there appeared to be crawling around Tokyo right now. "You figure we should try another place?" Akechi asked. "I suppose we could," Shoji answered. "I doubt it would be any better. She said this was the strongest life force she had ever felt, bar none. If she can't lock on to this one, not much chance of this working anywhere else." "But what's different in Tokyo that would make it easier?" Hitomi asked. "I've got some ideas about that," Shoji said. "Anyway, I think it's about time Yui gave up on this one, I want to go tell her before she wears herself out." "Okay, let's all go," Hitomi said. "You're going to look damned silly, you know, with that squirrel on your shoulder." "I'm keeping him. If any of the other animals object, I'll tell them to go climb a tree." Shoji laughed, because he knew she meant that literally. They all walked along the walkway and up the open stairway that led to the ancient temple building where they had left Yui earlier this morning. It had stopped drizzling, so they could walk out to the building without getting wet or putting up a PK barrier. Yui sat alone on the floor in front of the great black statue, as they had left her. She was using her folded jacket as a cushion. Still, it couldn't have been too comfortable, sitting there all this time. Since she had started, people seemed to be avoiding this particular temple. Even animals could probably sense the extremity of her effort. To Shoji, the tension in the air was palpable. **How's it going, sweetie?** he said, crouching down beside her and sending the gentlest of messages. She started, coming out of her trance. She took in a couple of slow, deep breaths. She opened her eyes and looked at Shoji, utterly despondent. **I'm sorry Senpai, it's no good.** **Well, might as well give up on it. We tried.** **I just don't understand it,** Yui said, the weariness and frustration clear on her face and in her sending. **I know it's there, but I just can't see it, like I can with those places in Tokyo. It's like ... I don't know, like there's a big light on over there that lets me see them, but over here it's dark.** **A big light, huh? Yeah, that's likely the problem.** Yui frowned. **What do you mean?** **Ever since the Weird Shit started in Tokyo about five years ago, a whole bunch of sensitives started talking about how something in the city had changed. A lot of them described it as a big lamp that lit up the city for their inner eye, the same way the sun lights it up for your regular eyes.** **Yeah, I've heard of that,** Hitomi said. **I kind of feel it too. Animals are easier to take, over there. I can still see into their souls over here, but I have to look harder.** **So what do we do?** Yui asked. **These Soul Icons aren't doing as much good as we thought. It's the ... what did you call it?** **Law of diminishing returns,** Shoji said. **The more we've got, the more we need to make the vision any clearer. Since neither you nor any of the other sensitives has seen anything new in the vision, we'll probably have to get a few more.** **Which means operating in Tokyo again,** Akechi said, obviously not happy about the idea. **Maybe,** Shoji said. **I think we should turn this into an extended vacation. We can spend a few days wandering around the countryside, and let Yui try out a few other temples. In the meantime, we can think about how to do this better. If we do need to go back to Tokyo, then by that time we'll have thought up lots of things.** **I'm game,** Hitomi said. Like the others, she didn't really have a job or anything she needed to worry about. She could do much the same thing to a human bank teller that Yui did to an ATM, so money really wasn't a problem. **That's settled then.** Shoji stood up and reached down to help Yui up. She got up awkwardly, her legs still cramped. She bent down and massaged them a bit, then picked up her jacket and put it on. She sent out the telepathic equivalent of a squeal when she saw what was perched on Hitomi's shoulder. **'Tomi, he is so cute! Can I hold him?** The two girls cooed over their new pet for a while. Well and good, Shoji thought. Just the thing to take their mind off the weirdos waiting for them back in Tokyo. ***** Setsuna walked into her favourite Roppongi restaurant. It was part of a club which was strictly members only. Naturally, the hostess recognized her immediately. The young woman smiled in greeting as Setsuna approached. "Good day, Meiou-san." "Good day," Setsuna replied. "We have your table ready. I understood you were to be having a guest joining you for lunch today." "That's right. I gave her name, she will be arriving shortly. I'll go sit down now, you can just show her in." "Of course. Right this way." She was escorted to her table, a booth that was in a dark corner, isolated, where she would not be disturbed. Half a minute later, a waiter came with the drink she had pre ordered. She was about halfway through her drink when she saw her friend being escorted towards her table. She stood up to greet the other woman. "Good day, Kaori-san. It's been a while." "Yes, it has. Thank you for inviting me." Like the Sailor Senshi, the Ancient was dressed to the nines, pretty much a requirement for even entering this place. Setsuna marvelled at how well she looked, one would hardly guess she was in her forties. Ancients tended to age well, especially the women who passed down the Power in their blood. Which was a rather ironic thought for someone like Setsuna to be having. The waiter arrived just seconds after they were both seated, and told them what was available. They ordered, and he left them. A few seconds later, another waiter came with the drink Setsuna had pre ordered for her friend. "So how was your week in the Pacific?" Kaori asked. "It was very nice. Everybody had a good time. Poor Jupiter had to leave a couple of days early to take care of something back home." "Nothing serious, I hope?" "No, quite the contrary. Her business ran into good fortune all of a sudden. She had to go back and make sure the increased volume was being dealt with properly." And that was as specific as she was going to get. The identities of the other Senshi was strictly off limits, they had agreed to that very early. Kaori nodded in understanding. This relationship of theirs had gone on for years now, but it was still a very delicate game for both of them. "That's good to hear. I know you were worried about anything happening here while you were all away, as I was. I'm glad you all had a chance to relax together, but I feel better now that you're back." "Thanks for keeping your eyes open while we were away." "Not at all. It's been so long since there's been anything requiring the attention of the Senshi, I suppose we were just being paranoid." Setsuna took another sip from her drink just then, as if for emphasis. "Actually, young Venus came across some trouble night before last." Kaori looked mildly surprised. As she had said, it had been a good long time since the Senshi had faced any paranormal adversary. "Really? I hope she's alright." "Yes, she's fine. I was talking to her last night. Her familiar had sensed something was amiss, so she went out to see what was happening. She found a temple that had just been demolished. There were four people there, two young men and two young women. One of the latter had extracted the life force from the holy place, precipitating its collapse. When she challenged them, one of the men assaulted her with weapons of fire. The other woman unleashed two monstrous birds on her. The other man nearly caught her unawares, he seemed to have some means to make himself invisible. By the time she fought the birds off, the four people had vanished. Teleported away, it seems." "I see." "The other Senshi are very concerned about this. The Princess may very well decide to intervene." Kaori would know that she was referring to Sailor Moon, and that Setsuna, as Sailor Pluto, owed allegiance to the Princess. Kaori stared down into her drink for a little while. Setsuna just waited. When Kaori looked up at her again, her expression was grim. "The young man who used the fire is my son. The young lady who took the temple's life force is his fiancee. The others are friends of his." Setsuna was not really surprised to hear this. She already knew that Kaori had a son. She didn't know his name, but she knew a fair amount about him. She knew that his specialty was use of fire. She knew he was engaged to a deaf mute girl with exceptionally strong powers. And she knew that Kaori was worried about how the both of them were fitting in to outsider society. "Since you know what they are doing, I must assume they are doing this with your approval," Setsuna said. There was no reproof in her tone, it was just a statement of fact. "With my reluctant approval, I must confess. They also have the support of the Matriarch, to some degree." The Matriarch. That was a person they rarely talked about. Kaori guarded her identity just as jealously as Setsuna guarded the identity of her Princess. Setsuna knew virtually nothing about her, except that she appeared to be the undisputed leader of their family. "Then I must also assume there is some purpose behind this activity." "There is. As the life force from each new temple is brought into the presence of the Crystal, we have found that the telepathic image it transmits becomes clearer and clearer." She looked troubled, as if wondering if she should say more. The Crystal was another thing she gave only vague hints about. She seemed to revere it even more than she revered the Matriarch. "Why is that image so important?" "My Son seems to believe it points the way to a great source of power." "Have you seen the image yourself?" "Yes." "Is it something you would be willing to share directly?" Kaori stared at her for a moment. She obviously knew what Setsuna meant. It's something they had done a few times in the past. More as a gesture of good faith than as anything with practical use. Kaori nodded. "Very well." She held out her hand. Setsuna took it in her own, and closed her eyes. She emptied her mind the way Kaori had explained to her in the past. This was Kaori's specialty, the ability to bring out latent psionic abilities in others. It hadn't taken Setsuna long to learn to receive telepathic images from Kaori. What Kaori didn't know was that Sailor Pluto had been trained to ward against psionic probes a very long time ago. If she had tried to read Setsuna's mind, she would have been stopped cold. To Kaori's credit, she had never tried. Setsuna could feel the link forming between them. She opened her mind to receive the image being sent. It was remarkably clear. And remarkably familiar. They severed the link. Setsuna opened her eyes and released Kaori's hand. Out of courtesy, she gave Kaori a few moments to recover. It was harder on the Ancient, she had to do most of the work. "Did you see it?" Kaori asked. "Yes, very clearly. A great crystal palace, rising up into a black sky." "My son is convinced that if we can secure the life force of more holy places, the Crystal will show us how we can bring the Palace into being. He believes it to be a great source of power. A sanctuary." "I see." Kaori didn't need to explain that last part. One thing they were both open about was their worry over the chaos that had been unleashed on the world, and what it would mean for Kaori's family and Setsuna's adopted family. The desire for a sanctuary in the times to come was something they both understood. Setsuna took a moment to sort out what she needed to say. As always at these meetings, she chose her words carefully. "I can tell you a few things. The palace is familiar to me. It is what you said, both a source of great power and a sanctuary. Bringing it into being is a worthy goal, and would be a remarkable achievement. I must ask you this, though. Can you think of no other way to achieve this than to attack more shrines or temples?" "Believe me, Setsuna, I have driven myself to distraction trying to find another way, as have others. All to no avail. If we are really to do this, it seems my son's method is all we have." Setsuna nodded. "That is unfortunate." "Setsuna ... I don't want our loved ones to come into conflict." "I'll do what I can to make sure that doesn't happen." "Is there anything I can do?" "I can't ask you to give me specifics, but can you tell me if your son is planning to move again soon?" "No, not for several days at least." "Then I'll try to see that they are not interfered with. I have to warn you about one thing, though. If they ever actually harm anybody, then all bets are off. The Senshi would come down on them hard and it would be out of my control." "I understand. The Matriarch has impressed upon them that harming innocents will not be tolerated. I think they've taken that to heart." "Let's hope they have." Setsuna relaxed, let her expression soften. "Now, do tell me about this new garden you're planning for your place." Soon their first course arrived, and they were discussing less weighty matters. Out of necessity, the two women had to keep some distance between themselves. But once they had defined what they could and could not discuss, they had found themselves becoming quite good friends. These careful exchanges of information had proven useful to both of them in the past. But over the years Setsuna found herself looking forward to these meetings more and more. Very soon after they parted company, Setsuna sat down in the club lounge and drew her cellular phone out of her handbag. She tapped the key that called a present number and waited. "Haruka, it's me ... I'm sorry, I imagine you must have been sleeping ... Oh, I see. My apologies ... No, everybody's fine. The reason I'm calling is I've found the reason for Michiru's vision ... Yes, that one ... It's not something we should discuss on the phone ... No, it doesn't need to be right away, but it would be best if you two were back here within the week ... Yes ... Yes, that would be fine ... We'll discuss that when you get back ... Thanks. My regards to Michiru, tell her I'm sorry for the intrusion ... Goodbye." Setsuna put away her cellular and checked her watch. Plenty of time to make their appointment with the supposed extraterrestrials. She was not looking forward to it, not looking forward to what she would have to do there. ***** Daniel Churchland drove his silver Cressida sedan up to the gate of his customer's residence, noting that it was closed. That had been instituted in the last couple of weeks. It was just a sign of the times, his customer was hardly the only one hunkering down, hardly the only one becoming more security conscious. On top of everything else that was going on, this business of the temples, for all the attempts to keep it under wraps, really seemed to have struck a nerve with this country's people. It seemed like he was being asked to show his passport and visa more and more often. He reached out the window and pressed the buzzer. The speaker next to it crackled. "Yes?" came a tinny male voice. Daniel looked at the tiny video camera. "Daniel Churchland, here for my usual appointment." "Thank you, please proceed." Daniel heard a rattle ahead, and slowly, the wrought-iron gate slid aside. He pushed the switch to close the car window, and proceeded down the long driveway to the mansion. The gardener was already at work in front of the house, he noted. Maintaining a carefully manicured lot this size would easily keep at least one man occupied full time. He parked in a designated area at the side of the house. He took his briefcase, locked his car and headed back around to the front door. Though he was employed by the household, his position was such that he was not asked to enter via the servants' entrance. Not that he would care, such things had long since ceased to matter. The butler who answered the door recognized him, of course. He led Daniel down the long hallway to the usual room. He opened the door for Daniel and stood aside. As usual the butler's manner was at the same time excruciatingly polite and utterly cold. It was unusual for a gaijin to be hired by such a distinguished household, so he often found his caucasian features raising eyebrows among other servants of the households he worked for. But in just the few years he had been in the country he had developed enough of a reputation that his credentials were not questioned. The room he entered faced east and had tall, wide windows opening up onto the garden, so it was lit brightly by the rising sun. The two children who sat on cushions at the low table near the window turned to look at the sound of the opening door. As one, they rose, turned to face him and bowed to their tutor. "Good morning, Sensei," they said. "Good morning Gen," Daniel said to the boy of eight. "Good morning, Yuriko," he said to the slightly younger girl. He walked over to the table, put down his briefcase beside it, sat down at a third cushion and gestured for the children to do likewise. He indicated with a smile that the formalities could now be dropped. "I see you're still going through the newspaper. Have each of you found something?" It was his habit to have each of the children he worked with read through the day's newspaper and find at least one item for them to discuss. It was somewhat above their reading level, but he always encouraged them never to be afraid to make mistakes and ask questions. "I found something!" Yuriko said, shooting her hand up. "Fine, would you read it to us, please?" She already had her section of the paper open to where she wanted, so she started reading immediately. When she had her first problem with the reading of a set of characters, Daniel slid over beside her and started giving her help. It was a fairly short article describing in a very matter-of-fact, low-key fashion the mysterious destruction of yet another temple in Tokyo. "And why did you pick this article?" Daniel asked. "What did you find interesting about it?" Yuriko grinned. She pointed to a part towards the end of the article and read it again, slowly and carefully. "One resident is reported having seen a young woman dressed in a white and orange fuku running towards the temple at around the time it is believed to have collapsed. The eyewitness report was consistent with others who have reported these unusual sightings in Juban area in the past few years." She turned back to Daniel, still smiling brightly. "That's what the papers always say when somebody sees one of the Sailor Senshi. And she was in orange, so it must be Sailor Venus!" Gen groaned. "Yuriko, you're supposed to read something *serious*." "It is serious!" the boy's sister shot back. "It means the Sailor Senshi are fighting the bad guys again." "The Sailor Senshi aren't real," Gen said haughtily. "Everybody knows that." "They are too!" "Okay, that's enough," Daniel said gently. "It doesn't really matter whether they're real, that's not the point. The point is, the eyewitness probably believed they had seen a Sailor Senshi and had said so to the reporter. But the reporter didn't want to say that in his article. You were able to read between the lines and make a good guess as to what it really meant. Very well done. Gen, do you have something for us?" He did. It was somewhat longer and more involved. Even though Gen was one year more advanced, he had bitten off a bit more than he could chew, Daniel had to help him out with quite a few of the words. It was a piece on a border clash in Southeast Asia that seemed to be quickly escalating into a full scale war. "And why did you pick this article?" Daniel asked. As he had told the children many times, his criterion for a reason was something outside the article itself, some other point to relate the article to. "In history class in school, the teacher there told me that this border they're fighting over isn't supposed to be there. It's only there because that's how the western countries divided up their colonies. If it wasn't for what the old western empires did, there might not be a war right now." Daniel nodded. "There is some truth to that. But it's only a half truth, at best. In fact, there are many reasons for that border to be there, both because of the local physical geography and the human geography. In fact, that border existed almost exactly as it is many times in history. People were fighting over that border four thousand years ago." Gen frowned. "Four thousand years?" "Yes, that's right." Gen shook his head forcefully, his expression grim. "You must be wrong." Daniel raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?" "My history teacher at school says history there started only about two thousand years ago." "State your position more clearly, please," Daniel said, with just a hint of sharpness in his tone. Gen took a moment this time, spoke more carefully. "He says that nobody knows what was happening in those countries that far back. There aren't any books or anything that old." Daniel nodded. "That's correct, there is no record of the history of that region older than about two thousand years." "So how do you know there was a border there four thousand years ago?" Daniel could see the triumph in Gen's eyes. He had actually tripped up the Sensei. "Well, it looks like you got me. Now, how to explain this?" Daniel rubbed his chin dramatically for a moment. "I guess there's nothing else to do." He looked all around the room, his expression grim and nervous, as if making absolutely sure they were all alone. Both children had looks of growing puzzlement on their faces, unsure what to make of his behaviour. He leaned forward, gestured for them both to come closer. They looked at each other briefly, each wondering if the other knew what was going on. Since neither did, they both slid closer. "Can the two of you keep a secret?" Daniel asked in a low, conspiratorial voice. They both nodded vigorously, their eyes wide, their faces full of anticipation. He was surely going to tell them one of the Big Adult Secrets. "The fact is, Daniel Churchland is not my real name." "It's not?" Gen asked, his voice also very low but with a tone that implied *is that all?* "No, it's not. I've gone by many, many names in my life. But my real name is Cyrus." "Cyrus what?" Yuriko asked. "Just Cyrus. I was born in a kingdom that is older than any kingdom you ever read about in a history book. When I was a young man, I had a spell put on me that kept me from ever growing old. All the people I knew then have long since died, and the city I was born in crumbled to dust thousands of years before the Egyptians built their pyramids. I have wandered across the Earth since then, teaching people about the history I have seen with my own eyes. I know that border existed four thousand years ago because I was there." The two children stared at him for a few seconds longer, then looked at each other. Abruptly they both fell over, heaving with hysterical laughter. "That's a very silly story!" Yuriko declared, being the first to recover from her laughing fit. Daniel smiled. "Yes, it is a silly story, isn't it?" Now Gen also sat back up. "Sensei, did you expect us to believe that?" "No, Gen, I didn't." "It couldn't possibly be true," Yuriko said, not sounding as indignant as her brother sounded. "No, I expect not. Anyway, enough of that. I want you both to read me the essays I asked you to write." "Me first!" Yuriko said, already reaching for her notebook. Cyrus made a mental note of the name of the other shrine which had been mentioned in the article Yuriko had read, the first shrine to be destroyed under mysterious circumstances. Later he would do some research, find out when it had happened. It was a long shot, but if these Sailor Senshi were who he thought they were ... his long search might finally be over. ***** Jeneth stirred the simmering contents of the pot a bit more, gave a little more time for the spices she had just added to mix in. She ladled a little bit of the broth into the tiny saucer she used for tasting. Seemed okay. "K'Theelm, could you come taste this and tell me what you think?" "Okay, just a moment." K'Theelm was at the counter behind her, cutting the fish they just got for the sashimi. "You know, they did say there would be only four of them," Thetan said suggestively, watching them from his seat at the dining table. His own eating habits being remarkably spartan, he had been rather overwhelmed by the elaborate preparations his two companions were making. He had quite properly decided to just stay out of their way. *Only four,* Jeneth thought. Yes, just four Avatars coming for dinner, that's all. Nothing to be nervous about, nothing at all. "We want to have a large variety available," K'Theelm explained as he cleaned off his knife, done with the sashimi. "For all we know, their eating habits may be as restrictive as yours." "I believe Venus-san indicated they were ... flexible." "That's Sailor Venus," Jeneth corrected him. She paced the kitchen nervously as she spoke. "Or just Venus, as she said. I assume we can just address the others as Mars and Pluto. I'm not sure about their leader, somehow Moon doesn't sound right." "Best stick with Sailor Moon," K'Theelm suggested. "That's how she's referred to in the popular media." He walked over to the steaming pot, and carefully ladled a small amount into another of the tiny saucers. "Mmm. Yes, I think it's just right. We can let it simmer." He put the lid over the pot, turned the element down a notch. "Looks like everything's ready, good timing." "Yes." Venus had assured Jeneth they would arrive at exactly the appointed time. Just a few minutes now. Jeneth took off her apron and hung it up. "It was such short notice, I wish we had thought to rent a larger place for a night. We're so cramped here, they may be used to much better." "Venus actually complimented you on your choice of apartments," Thetan reminded her. "That's true." Venus had seemed quite comfortable here, maybe it would be okay. "She seemed remarkably young, I wonder what the others are like?" "I think we'll be finding out very soon," Thetan said, getting up from his chair at the end of the table. "You sense something approaching?" K'Theelm asked. He was now standing with them in the dining area. "Yes, I think they're here." Thanks to Thetan's warning, Jeneth did no more than flinch when the four women dropped down onto the balcony outside the sliding glass doors. Venus caught sight of her immediately. She smiled warmly and waved. Jeneth did likewise. Venus looked just as she had the first time they had met, a pretty young woman with sparkling blue eyes and long blonde hair tied back with a big red ribbon. The outfit she wore bore a superficial resemblance to many of the uniforms the school girls in this country wore. The white bodysuit that covered her upper body seemed to cling to her like a second skin, yet softened the lines of her body as if there were some padding or, as K'Theelm had speculated, flexible armour. The orange collar, short orange pleated skirt and the purple ribbon at her breast was what made it resemble a school uniform. But there were embellishments that marked the outfit as something quite different. The orange sandals, for instance. The white gloves that went to her elbows and ended with what looked like ribbed elbow pads. The little transparent wings at her shoulders. The tiara that held a glowing jewel at her forehead. And of course the oversized yellow ribbon at the small of her back, whose ends trailed almost down to her knees. Jeneth quickly sized up the other three women. The first was a raven- haired beauty with dark eyes and a stern, wary expression. Her outfit was identical to Venus', except for being red wherever Venus' was orange or yellow. If the depictions in the media which K'Theelm had shown them were correct, this would be the one called Mars. The second could almost have been mistaken for Venus, except her hair and eyes were slightly darker. And her hair was done up in pigtails that Jeneth would swear came close to touching the ground. Her outfit was a little more flamboyant as well. The skirt was white with blue and yellow along the hem. She wore red knee-high boots which matched the ribbon at her breast. The dark blue of her collar matched that of the skirt, and the transparent wings at her shoulders were a bit larger. The ribbon at her back was a translucent mauve affair that fluttered down even lower than her pigtails. Sailor Moon, presumably. By process of elimination the fourth one must be Pluto, on whom K'Theelm could find no information at all. She was tall with dusky skin and long, green- tinted black hair. But for the little red heart-shaped ornament at her breast, her outfit was all black and white. Her disturbing red eyes locked on Jeneth's for just a second before continuing their calm, methodical scan of the room. Jeneth suppressed a shiver. There was something very different about that one, something that set her apart from the other three. Jeneth's eyes saw a beautiful young woman, but everything else was telling her that she was looking at something as ancient as the stars. Even more so than the others, her aura had a depth and richness that it seemed could not possibly have been developed over a single lifetime. They had no idea the Senshi were going to show up like this. Thetan was quick to adapt. He walked to the glass door, and bowed low as he slid it aside. "Welcome, Sailor Senshi. You honour us with your presence." "Thank you," Venus said, doing a quick bow but never losing that friendly smile. "Sorry for dropping in on you like this." She giggled. "Sorry, I can never resist that joke." "Please come in," Thetan said, stepping back towards his companions and beckoning their guests to enter. Venus led them in. She was very relaxed, as she had been two nights ago after she had gotten solid ground back under her feet. Sailor Moon smiled shyly, looking a little nervous. Mars and Pluto wore neutral expressions. They were both still watching the room and their three hosts warily, the latter managing to be a little less obvious about it. "Let me do the introductions," Venus said. "This is Sailor Moon, our leader." "Pleased to meet you," the young woman with the pigtails said, bowing. Jeneth took a closer look at her ... and was barely able to suppress a gasp. It hadn't been obvious at first because it was so deeply hidden. But looking at her aura close up was like looking at a fractal pattern, it gave the impression that it went on forever, infinite in all directions. Jeneth's heartbeat quickened. *She is the one. She must be the one who drew us here.* "This is Sailor Mars." The severe young woman nodded curtly. Her gaze was almost as disturbing as Pluto's. "And this is Sailor Pluto." Again, just a curt nod. "I am Thetan of the Warrior Caste," Thetan said, bowing again. "Jeneth of the Healer Caste," Jeneth said, doing likewise. "K'Theelm of the Engineer Caste. Welcome to our home." "Thank you," Sailor Moon said. She smiled in an impish way that reminded Jeneth so much of Venus' manner. Already she could see they were alike in more than just looks. If she could find an appropriate time, she would have to ask them if they were related. "It's a bit late to be saying this, and I hope it doesn't sound silly, but ... welcome to Earth." Her expression suddenly changed, as if having just become aware of something. She sniffed. "Boy, something sure smells good." Jeneth thought she heard Mars make some sound. She spared a look at the raven-haired Senshi to find her barely suppressing a look that seemed to mix indulgent amusement with long-suffering sadness. "Venus told us you'd be joining us for dinner," K'Theelm said. "We took the liberty of preparing a modest meal, I hope you'll do us the honour of joining us." They did. Over dinner, the Senshi asked them all a barrage of questions. Sailor Moon, like Venus, seemed to be just curious about the sort of lives they had made for themselves here on Earth. Mars and Pluto were also friendly and polite, but their questioning seemed a little more calculated and systematic, they listened a little more intently to the answers Jeneth and her companions gave. Remarkably, the Senshi asked nothing of their own dead planet. Jeneth wondered if this was something they had all agreed on beforehand, out of consideration for their hosts' feelings. She considered volunteering some story of their home world, but decided to follow the lead of the Senshi and avoid the topic. Sailor Moon managed to devour more than any three of them, all with great enthusiasm and repeated words of praise and gratitude. Avatar or no, Jeneth was really beginning to worry about her becoming ill. They certainly wouldn't have many leftovers to put away. "That was simply delicious!" Sailor Moon enthused after polishing off the last of her dessert. "I'm glad you liked it," Jeneth said. "Do you have any room left for tea?" "Absolutely." After everyone was served, Mars discretely cleared her throat. Sailor Moon glanced at her, and they exchanged barely visible nods. From her place at the end of the table, Sailor Moon looked back at her hosts, her expression a bit more serious now. "Jeneth, K'Theelm, Thetan, there are some things I think you ought to know. I mean, about what happened when Galaxia came to Earth." "Venus explained to us that you defeated her," Thetan said. "Well, it wasn't quite that simple. You see, Galaxia was actually possessed. A very long time ago, she had defeated a being that we know only as Chaos. Eventually, it corrupted her, and she started taking the Star Seeds from people all over the galaxy. By the time she got here, by the time I fought her, she had been taken over completely by Chaos. The two of them together were too powerful, there was no way I could defeat them." "I'm not sure I understand," Jeneth was moved to say. She glanced at her two companions. K'Theelm also looked puzzled, but she saw a glimmer of comprehension in Thetan's eye, as if he had some idea where this was going. "All I did was to undo what Galaxia did so long ago," Sailor Moon continued. "I set Chaos free. Without a host to bind it, Chaos spread out through the galaxy, the way it had been in the beginning. Galaxia was also set free, she went back to her normal self." "Her normal self?" Thetan asked. Jeneth could hear a slight edge, a deeper resonance in his great voice. He was not happy about what he was hearing. "Thetan, Galaxia was not a bad person at all. What she tried to do was good, she tried ridding us of Chaos forever. But she couldn't do it, probably nobody could do it. She couldn't help what happened." Thetan sighed deeply, shook his head. "Forgive me, I don't doubt what you say is true. But so many people, so many worlds have paid for her folly, I cannot find it in my heart to forgive. If I may ask, what judgement did you make upon her?" Sailor Moon shook her head. "I didn't punish her. I just asked her to undo what she did. I asked her to return the Star Seeds to their homes." Jeneth felt utterly lost and bewildered. The magnitude of what the Avatar had said was just sinking in. "Sailor Moon ... " she said hesitantly. "Do you mean to say, you asked Galaxia to guide their souls to their final resting places?" Sailor Moon looked puzzled by the question. She was interrupted by Mars. "Perhaps I can explain," the red-clad Senshi suggested. "As Sailor Moon said, we couldn't defeat Galaxia when she was possessed by Chaos. We tried, but we were defeated. Pluto, Venus and I all had our Star Seeds taken." Mars waited a moment as the implications of that sank in. She nodded, probably in response to the look of shock and comprehension Jeneth felt must be on her face right now. "That's right. After Sailor Moon set her free of Chaos, Galaxia was able to restore us from our Star Seeds. She is the most powerful Senshi who ever lived, if she could do that for us then we have no reason to believe she couldn't do the same for the countless other people whose Star Seeds were taken." Again, there was silence. Jeneth had no idea what to say, this was just too much to grasp all at once. "I'm not sure I see how she could do that," K'Theelm said. Jeneth looked at him. She could see and hear hints of what he felt, the disbelief and the hope that just refused to die despite that disbelief. But his engineer's mind was in full command right now. "Our world was laid waste by the forces Galaxia unleashed," he continued. "Even if she could somehow bring everybody back, restore their bodies from their Star Seeds, they would have no world to live on." "Having the Star Seeds under her protection gives Galaxia great power," Pluto said. "Especially those of the Senshi, whom you call Avatars. I believe it would give her the power to restore worlds, as it gave her the power to destroy them. If she goes to your world and restores your own Avatars, I believe that under her guidance and lent her strength, they could restore your world to a livable state." "It could not be done quickly," K'Theelm said, his natural scepticism still in play. "No, it could not," Pluto agreed. "Though perhaps it would not take as long as you might think. Since your own world was attacked just a year before Galaxia arrived here, it was likely one of the last places she attacked. If she follows the logical course, it will likely be one of the first places she visits. With the power of all the Star Seeds behind her, she would be able to move very quickly among the stars. In fact, I think there is a good chance she may have visited your world already." "Oh Spirits ..." it was too much. Jeneth buried her face in her hands, broke down and wept. To think of the blasted rock that was her home, restored, to think of all her friends and family, alive again. It was too much. "Jeneth ..." K'Theelm put his arm around her. His voice was husky, he sounded as overcome with emotion as she was. Perhaps because of the bombshell the Senshi had dropped, perhaps because of her own reaction. Jeneth knew how he hated to see her cry. "Jeneth, it'll be okay." Another voice, another arm around her. Sailor Moon. "Whenever you're ready to go home, your friends will all be there waiting for you. I'm sure of it. Believe in Galaxia. She brought my friends back to me, I'm sure she'll bring yours back to you." Jeneth sniffed, dried her eyes with a napkin. "Thank you," she breathed. She took Sailor Moon's gloved hand, kissed it, beyond caring about any impropriety. "This is a miracle, we never dared hope," she sobbed. "I'm glad we were able to tell you what really happened," Sailor Moon said. Her other arm was still around Jeneth's shoulder. "I'm just sorry it hadn't been sooner." Jeneth looked from the Avatar to her friend ... no, her brother in all but blood. He smiled lovingly at her. "We can go home, Jeneth. I can take us all home." His voice was steady again. Sometimes Jeneth envied him the benefits of the symbiont, which could drain the physical effects of emotional stress out of his system at a moment's notice. Sailor Moon had stepped back, letting them share the moment privately. Thetan was behind his two companions now. He gently rested one great hand on each of their shoulders. "Yes, we can go home." He turned to face the Avatar, who had gone back to stand by her chair. "Sailor Moon, Avatar ... words fail me. It is as Jeneth said, you have worked a miracle. For this, my life is yours. Command me." Sailor Moon's eyes went wide, her mouth dropped open. She couldn't have known the full significance of a member of the Warrior Caste speaking those words. But it was as if some warrior's instinct allowed her to understand at least partially. She nodded in acknowledgement. "This probably isn't a good time for us to talk, we should leave you for today." "No, please stay," Jeneth said. She reached up to her shoulder, laid her delicate hand over Thetan's massive one, feeling as if she could really draw strength from it. "You came here seeking our aid, we simply can't turn you away." "Are you sure you'll be okay, Jeneth?" Sailor Moon asked gently. "We can always come back and talk some other time." "I'll be fine, thank you," Jeneth said. "Now more than ever, I'd like to help you fight these criminals who are desecrating your holy places." "I concur," Thetan said. He withdrew his hand from Jeneth's shoulder, and went to resume his seat at the end of the table. "We don't know when they may strike again, perhaps even this very night. Please, tell us how we may best serve you." Sailor Moon resumed her seat at the other end of the table. "Okay. I guess we should plan how we're going to work together." "Before we continue, I have a question, if I may." They all turned to face Pluto, who was seated near Thetan. She was looking to Sailor Moon, as if for permission. "Of course, Pluto," Sailor Moon said. "What is it?" She turned to Thetan sitting beside her. "I'd like you to tell me everything you know about Galaxia's attack on your planet." "Pluto, why are you asking them about that?" Venus asked, sounding almost angry. Pluto turned to look at Venus, not reacting at all to her challenge. "What we see happening here in Tokyo is much like what is happening all across the world, it is simply a symptom of the Chaos that was unleashed from Galaxia's hold. I have been trying to understand the nature of this force as best I can, in order to better combat it. Everything I learn about how this force works, however irrelevant it may seem, may point to another weapon that can be used against it." "Pluto, that's fine but I don't think this is the right time," Sailor Moon said sternly. "Especially considering the shock we just finished giving them," Mars said, also sounding none too happy. "Your pardon, but if you think it will help I will be happy to recount what we know," Thetan said. "It happened very quickly, and we had a very limited view of what happened, so the story will not be long in the telling." He looked to Sailor Moon. She nodded and gave her assent. Thetan began his tale. "Our own world had been in communication with several neighbouring worlds for centuries. Some of them had also devised means of travelling between the stars. Our first warning of Galaxia's advance was when the small but steady traffic from one of those worlds suddenly ceased ..." ***** Five years ago, another part of the galaxy Thetan swung open the heavy wooden door and emerged from the squat stone building that served as their living quarters. The cold north wind bit into him, barely kept at bay by his woolen cloak. It was an early autumn this year. The farmers in the valley far below would be racing to bring in their meagre crops before they withered. They would be depending on shipments from the northern hemisphere more than ever this year. Everyone would still eat well, but by no means extravagantly. He made his way up the narrow path that hugged the edge of the cliff face. He rounded an outcropping, and the temple proper came into view. It was a somewhat larger dark stone building, surrounded by what was the largest piece of flat ground for miles around. Which wasn't saying much. It was sufficient for the exercises he and the other temple warriors performed each day. And for the rendezvous he was now hurrying to keep. He pulled his knapsack tighter to him, making sure it was secure as he rounded a particulary narrow, treacherous part of the pathway. More than one careless traveller had plunged to his death from here. The path led onto the tiny plateau. Other than the few little tufts of scrub grass that hung precariously to the rocky ground, the only sign of life was the five other warriors lined up in front of the temple, waiting for him. Not much of a sign of life, since they were standing like statues. Like him, they wore heavy cloaks to offer some protection against the cruel wind, and had knapsacks slung over their shoulders. As Thetan approached, the first in line stepped forward. "Command me." He was a big man, even bigger than Thetan. And with even more scars. >From his formality, you would hardly guess the two of them had seen a hundred battles together, from the vampire killsweeps to the assaults on the pirate asteroids. He was a stickler for protocol, as always. "A shuttle will be arriving shortly to take us to the greater L-4 fortress. We will be making ourselves available to the Guards legion there. They have been instructed to be at a higher state of readiness, and are calling in extra forces. We will find out more when we arrive." Thetan took his place at the head of the line and waited with the others. He gazed up into the sky. *You'd better be here on time, old friend, I feel like I'm about to freeze off my-* The thought was interrupted by the sight of a vessel emerging from around the mountain to his left. It curved around gracefully, and descended towards the plateau. These shuttles the Engineers concocted always reminded Thetan of great fish. Supposedly that was not a coincidence, though how exactly a fish could be of any use in constructing an airship was quite beyond him. The grey surface of the vehicle was featureless but for the two round sensors up front like great bulging eyes, and the various fins that supposedly helped it cut smoothly through the air. Four of those fins were now swinging lower as the shuttle approached the ground. Despite the vicious winds, the shuttle came down smoothly to the ground. Thetan smiled. There were very few pilots who could make a landing under these conditions look so easy. Thetan stepped out of line and walked out towards the shuttle. As he approached, a slit in the leathery grey hull parted and dilated open. The pilot stepped out into the opening, but ventured no further. Thetan walked up the fin and smiled in greeting. "Well met, K'Theelm." "And you, Thetan," the slender man said, clasping his hand. "Spirits, how can you live here?" "It only gets really bad in mid-winter." "I know, that's why I try to get assignments in the northern hemisphere then." "Are you ready to take us up?" "When you are." Thetan turned and bellowed an order to be heard above the wind. The five warriors strode out to the shuttle, and they all embarked. After seeing that they were all secure, K'Theelm led Thetan into the cockpit. Thetan settled his bulk into the copilot's harness. In a pinch, he really could fly one of these beasts, more or less. Had done it under fire more than once. But right now, he was happy to leave that to the expert. The round glass plate in front of each of them showed a panoramic fish-eye view of the terrain around them. K'Theelm had told him you got used to seeing the world this way after a while. He found that hard to believe. There was a slight lurch as K'Theelm coaxed his vehicle into the air. He did not require the crude controls that Thetan would have needed, he talked to the beast strictly through his symbiont. The one embedded under his skin-tight pilot's suit. Thetan waited until they had cleared the mountains and were in a clear ascent which required little of K'Theelm's attention. "I called your house yesterday, your father told me you'd already been called to duty." "Since day before yesterday, in fact. I've been shuttling warriors everywhere. It's not just the orbital fortresses, everybody is on alert. >From the activity I've seen, I'd say all the reserves are being called up." "*All* of them? Spirits, that hasn't happened since the Mad Avatar rebellion." And that had been centuries ago. "Funny you should mention that. Yesterday I shuttled none other than the Storm Planet Avatar to the lesser moon." Thetan frowned. "Why did she not teleport herself? Did she look ill?" "No, but she did look very spooked. I didn't ask any questions, of course. But you know what they say about some of the Avatars' powers, they can call upon them only when they're all in link." Which meant that one of the Avatars could no longer link with the others. "Do you think one of them has been assassinated?" "A coup? No, I've been all over cislunar space and haven't seen any actual sign of fighting, just preparations. Me, I think it's got more to do with losing contact with the Great Dragon Star." Thetan had heard about the mysterious drop in traffic from that star a few days ago. But he couldn't imagine an actual threat coming from such a distance. Only Avatars and certain very gifted pilots could transport themselves and at best a tiny vessel over such distances. An attack on a planet as heavily defended as this one would be suicide. "What makes you say that?" "When I got called up, they were specifically asking for pilots who had made the run to Great Dragon. I almost got that detail myself, but got assigned to high priority shuttle runs instead. I figure they sent somebody over there with a Sensitive in tow to scan the whole system, check things out. Either they came back and told the Avatars something scary or they haven't come back at all, which is even more scary." "I wish we knew more. A lot of people have been on edge lately. In the village below our temple, there's a very gifted Precognitive. She hasn't been able to work for days, she's been wracked with nightmares she doesn't understand." "She's not alone, I've heard a few stories like that. Just a moment, I need to prepare for our jump." The view on the glass plates had gradually changed, the blue sky slowly turning black and the stars appearing as they left the atmosphere. Now the view changed abruptly, the stars and the planet below taking on a red hue. Other objects showed up as bright red spots. The beacons on all the orbital stations that guided the pilots. "This is the pilot," K'Theelm said, his voice suddenly amplified and resonating through the vehicle, no doubt also into the passenger compartment where the other warriors were strapped into the harnesses. "We are about to make our jump to L-4." The view swung over until one of the red points was centred on their view. Thetan was always tempted to close his eyes at this point, but he knew that only made it worse. In the blink of an eye, the great fortress loomed before them. It took just a moment for the vertigo to subside. And another moment to realize the fortress was under attack. "What the hell are those?" K'Theelm shouted. He switched the screens back to normal vision, then zoomed in on one of the tiny figures buzzing around the great sphere. It was moving fast, they just got a glimpse. An alien woman in a strange uniform, surrounded by a battle aura and a spherical force shield. A jewel on her forehead blazed brightly. As she swooped by, she shot something out of great metal bracelets, balls of energy that slammed into a gun emplacement, destroying it. Alien Avatars. It could be nothing else. But there were dozens of them. "Do we run?" K'Theelm asked. Now they were in a combat zone, the warrior was automatically in command of the vessel. "Try and dock us, quick as you can. Get us in, then get yourself out. Warp to the nearest fortress." That is, assuming the nearest fortress was any safer. Spirits, what the hell was this? K'Theelm dove straight in. The curved surface of the fortress leapt out at them. The first docking port they came to looked badly damaged, so they sped along the surface to the next one. There was a lot of damage, most of the outer sections had probably lost their air by now. The organic hull's self-repair was being completely overwhelmed. Thetan was the first to spot the alien Avatar swooping in on them. His shout of warning came just as he saw her bracelets flare. There was a thunderclap and the ship lurched violently. "Release a cloud!" Thetan shouted. "Done." There was a gentler concussion as the bladders burst, filling the surrounding space with an inky black cloud. Under its cover, flying blind, K'Theelm dove even closer to the fortress, hugged close to it. He dove into one of the really big docks, the ones for the slow boats. Good, that might offer some protection. "I'm taking us into one of the cargo locks." "Aren't there docks for skiffs in here?" Thetan asked. "We can't dock. Thetan ... we lost the airlock." Rage and shock wrestled for dominance in Thetan's mind. K'Theelm meant the passenger section. They were all dead. His entire command. Even before they got onto the battlefield. *Old friend ... rest in peace. I will avenge you.* K'Theelm manoeuvred the wounded ship inside a cargo lock. On his command, the transparent field came up behind them and the compartment filled with air. "K'Theelm-" "I'm coming with you. She's too badly damaged to warp, and you may need a protective shield." That was true. There was no time to argue. "We'll report to the war room, assuming we can make it there." Thetan unstrapped himself from the harness. They were weightless now, so he just pushed himself up to the ceiling. "This way," K'Theelm said. A small section of the hull beside the pilot's seat dilated open. Emergency exit. Yes, the pilot would want to avoid the horror that lay in the compartment behind them. Understandable. They made their way along narrow corridors, pushing themselves off walls or proceeding hand over hand along ropes, as need dictated. The air was hot and rank, the corridors only dimly lit by a few of the glow plugs. The veins in the living matter of the walls heaved and pulsated. The fortress was straining to repair itself and cool itself. It looked to be a losing battle. They found one of the great spoke corridors that led straight to the core of the fortress. Traffic was much heavier here, it was pandemonium. Thetan noted wounded Warriors and Engineers being led towards the interior. Some of them were comatose, but showed no sign of injury. "Thetan! It *is* you!" Thetan recognized the man sailing up the wide corridor in the opposite direction. A Guards officer he had served under once. They both killed their momentum, as did K'Theelm. "Well met, Centurion." "And you, Warrior." They ducked into the entrance of a side corridor, so as not to block the way. "Did you just arrive?" "Yes, we were on our way to report. This is K'Theelm, our pilot. Our shuttle was attacked, we were the only survivors." "I'm sorry," the Centuriou said, placing a hand on Thetan's shoulder. His expression showed he understood what that meant. But a moment later, his expression hardened. "Communications are being jammed, I have need of a first class Warrior and Engineer for an important detail, I was going to seek aid from one of the other units. Will you serve?" "Command me." "This way." They continued their way further down into the interior. There was some modest drop in the heat and the pandemonium as they went. The Centurion led them down a number of side passages. From the number of checkpoints they passed, they were headed into a very highly secure area. The white helmets and holstered power wands of the last set of guards marked them as the personal guards of the Avatars. They were admitted entrance. Symbols on the wall of the corridor beyond marked it as an area that afforded artificial weight. The three of them oriented themselves properly, and were drawn down to the floor with increasing force as they proceeded. Very few sections had such a luxury, it was very draining on the fortress' systems. As the door at the end of the corridor dilated open, Thetan felt growing trepidation. Which was as nothing to what he felt at the sight that greeted him. It looked like a much smaller version of the war room. Round glass plates of all sizes covered the walls of the round room, walls that merged into the ribbed, dome ceiling. There were just a few ornate chairs in the room. Thetan had heard that such a place existed. A private council chamber for the Avatars and their advisors. A mattress had been rolled out on the floor. On it lay the Ring Planet Avatar in her battle uniform. She looked dead or unconscious. Presumably the latter, since a red-haired woman in a Healer's tunic was kneeling over her, probing the Avatar's face with her hands. The Healer's aura was blinding, she was applying an incredible amount of energy, probably enough to kill an ordinary mortal. Thetan's heart leaped into his throat as he noticed the heavy silver bracelets the Avatar now wore. The Centurion bowed to the other occupant of the room. "I have brought aid, as you instructed, Mistress. The Warrior Thetan, and the Engineer K'Theelm." The Greater Moon Avatar smiled weakly. "Thank you, Centurion." The leader of the Avatars did not look well. Her slim form was slumped in the great wooden chair. Her bluegreen hair, normally done up in elaborate rings, spilled around her shoulders in tangles. Her white robes were torn and blackened in places. There were bruises on the delicate grey skin of her face and arms. She had one hand on the sceptre that lay on one arm of the chair. Somehow, Thetan had the impression it was being held at the ready in its capacity as a weapon, not as a badge of office. She beckoned for Thetan and K'Theelm to approach. "Time may be short, so I will be brief. Two days ago, I sent the Ring Planet Avatar on a mission to the Great Dragon Star. Today, she returned. As leader of the army which now assails us. She came to our fortress on the Lesser Moon, where I was in council with the other Avatars. She demanded our surrender. She told me she now serves Galaxia, who means to rule all the stars of the galaxy." The Avatar seemed to shrink into herself, her voice became lower, with a slight quiver. "We ... fought her. All the other Avatars were slain. Only by their sacrifice was I able to subdue whatever is possessing the Ring Planet Avatar. For she is possessed, unable to control her own actions." Thetan felt a shiver of sick fear. *All the Avatars ... slain.* "I brought her here, barely on time to avoid this attack of the alien Avatars," the Greater Moon Avatar continued. "This is our strongest fortress, it may buy me the time I need to free my sister from her tormenter." She fixed her eyes on K'Theelm. "Engineer, please offer assistance to the Healer. Your symbiont may see things she cannot. Try to find a way to remove her bonds without ... harming her." "I will do my best," K'Theelm said, bowing. He turned to walk over to where the Healer still tended the Ring Planet Avatar. "Warrior, your task is simple. If the Star Planet Avatar awakens and she is still possessed, I will bind her with the sceptre. I have already found out that I will only be able to do that for a few seconds. My other sisters paid for that lesson with their lives. In those seconds where she is helpless, I want you to gather all your ki into a kinetite, come behind her and detonate it at the base of her skull. Do you understand?" It took a few seconds for that to register. "Avatar ... is it your intention that I kill her?" "Yes. If I can, I will let her live the last day of her life under her own free will. If I cannot, I will see to it she does not live as a slave." She sighed, closed her eyes, rested her forehead against her hand. "It's all I can do." "Avatar, is there no hope?" She opened her eyes and gave a sad smile. It looked like she understood, he hadn't missed her reference to 'the last day of her life.' She gestured to the glass plates that surrounded them. "See for yourself." Thetan glanced up at the screens ... and soon what was happening in the room faded into the background. Half the screens were blank, and more were winking out as he watched. Those that remained all showed scenes of horror. The alien Avatars were everywhere. The floating fortresses, the colonies on the moons and planets, the cities on the planet below, all were under attack. The crazed berserker women, glowing with power, destroyed all in their path. Nothing could stand in their way, the few who offered resistance could only watch as any weapon launched at the twisted Avatars simply bounced off their shields. Wherever they swarmed, hellish black clouds gathered around them, blotting out the sun. And they hunted down all those who were flushed out of the structures they destroyed. Blasts of energy from their bracelets cut through men, women and children, striking them down. Thetan noticed something he had thought to be his imagination. "By all that's holy," he breathed. "Is that their souls I see being taken?" "The Ring Planet Avatar called them Star Seeds," the Greater Moon Avatar answered. "I fear hers has been taken as well, and all I try and do for her will be in vain." "Avatar, I fear that is true." Thetan had not even noticed the Healer moving up next to him. He had been dimly aware of her and K'Theelm exchanging murmured words as they conducted their examination. She looked infinitely tired, as if barely able to stand even with the much reduced weight afforded by this room. "Then you cannot revive her, Jeneth?" the Avatar asked gently. "I searched and searched, but her soul is not there. Her body lives, but only as a puppet. Even if the ... even if K'Theelm can free her from her bonds, it will not bring her back. It will undoubtedly kill her. I'm sorry." The Avatar closed her eyes. For just a moment, Thetan could see it on her face. The last of her sisters, lost to her. When she opened her eyes, her expression had hardened. "Centurion, the screens show me that Galaxia's army has begun boarding the fortress. Your unit is no doubt being deployed, you should be with them. I release you from my service." The Centurion hesitated. "Mistress, if I may-" "These two you have brought, I would have stay with me. Your place is elsewhere." Her words brooked no argument. The Centurion bowed and turned to go. When the door sealed behind him again, she turned to Thetan. "I perceive you would join him, Warrior." She spoke truly. But Thetan did not feel it proper to ask. "I am yours to command." "Engineer," The Avatar said, raising her voice to be heard by K'Theelm who was still bent over the Ring Planet Avatar. "I would speak with you." K'Theelm, stood, walked quickly over and bowed. "Avatar, I have no news, the bonds that have been placed on her still confound me." "Don't concern yourself," the Avatar said gently, smiling as if to assure him no failure was implied. "Tell me, is your symbiont capable of star travel?" "Yes, Avatar." "And its capacity?" "Two others besides myself." She nodded. "Fine. Then I have a task for the three of you. Go to the Kinmoku system and seek audience in the court of Princess Fireball. Their planet is furthest from the galactic centre, and least likely to have fallen under attack yet. Tell them what has transpired here. You three have seen close up, each in your own way, what Galaxia was able to do to one of our Avatars, and to our world. They may very well face imminent attack themselves. I have little idea what they can do to prepare, but we owe them a warning if we can give one." Thetan went down on one knee. "Avatar, I implore you-" "No." She stood up, held her sceptre close to her breast. Thetan could feel power building in it. "I will ... release my sister from her burden. Then I will help my people as best I can. Engineer, there is a jump corridor set up between here and a transit station in the great comet cloud. Your symbiont will be able to detect it easily. Please prepare yourself." "Yes, Avatar." K'Theelm had a somewhat glazed look on his face, as if it was finally sinking in that they were leaving their doomed home behind. Probably for the last time. But he was doing as ordered. Thetan could sense the power building in his symbiont as K'Theelm prepared it for flight. The Avatar smiled, looking briefly at Jeneth then at Thetan. "May the Spirits watch over you." She walked past them and went to kneel next to her comatose sister. Thetan knew what she was preparing to do. It seemed she would be waiting until they left. At any rate, their audience with her was finished, there would be no more words. "Warrior ..." He turned to face the Healer, getting a good look at her for the first time. She looked younger than he would expect for one with the magnitude of power she had displayed earlier. She was trying to hide it, but she was terrified. "I confess I've never flown ... in ... like-" "In a protective bubble?" Thetan said softly. "Yes. Is there ... anything I need to do?" "No, K'Theelm will do the work." He smiled. "Don't worry, K'Theelm has flown me like this many times, to farther places than Kinmoku. We're safe in his hands." "I'm ready," K'Theelm said just loud enough to be heard. Suddenly they were all walking on eggshells, not wanting to disturb the Avatar as she prepared herself to do the unthinkable. Thetan looked at Jeneth. She swallowed hard and nodded. She was ready. Thetan took her hand, and led her to stand in front of K'Theelm. In moments, the protective barrier appeared around them. The feeling of weightlessness came, and they floated up into the air. "I've got the jump point," K'Theelm announced. "We're ready to go." ***** Five years later, Tokyo All thought of their current problems were swept aside as Mars sat utterly enraptured by this strange tale of faraway worlds. "We made it to Kinmoku," Thetan continued. "But we found the planet surrounded by the black clouds that Galaxia's hordes had unleashed on our world. Jeneth and I could sense the horrors that were transpiring below. We could think of nothing other than to continue in the same direction. That area was uncharted, so K'Theelm was flying blind. His symbiont could take energy directly from the stars, and Jeneth showed us how we could obtain nourishment from it. But we are no Avatars, so we could not live like this indefinitely, we needed to find a planet we could live on. "We were near despair by the time we felt your presence here," Thetan said, now looking at Sailor Moon. Sailor Moon blinked, looked rather confused. She pointed to herself. "You detected ... *my* presence? From way out in space?" Thetan smiled. "As the healer will attest, your aura is like nothing we have ever seen. Looking at you now, I feel as if I see the whole of time and space laid out before me, a pattern of perfect order and harmony going on forever. It extends over this whole city, then sends more nebulous tendrils over all of the Earth, then sends out tendrils still more delicate to encompass all the planets. If the vision of our inner eyes were more sensitive, I don't doubt we would see that same pattern repeated at even wider scales, reaching out to encompass the galaxy and the Universe." "Oh." "Sailor Moon, are you well?" Jeneth asked hesitantly. Sailor Moon lost her glazed look, started as if coming out of a trance. She laughed nervously. "Uh ... yeah, I'm fine. Just fine. Sorry Thetan, please go on." "Well, the rest you know. We settled down in the city that held the source of this aura, just as we've told you." "There's something I've been wondering about," Mars said. "Were you never tempted to try and warn anybody about what was coming?" "Certainly," Thetan said. "But we couldn't find anyone who we thought would even believe us, much less be able to do anything about it. We thought surely the aura we detected must be from an Avatar. And of course, this city had come under attack by very powerful mystical energies more than once, and somebody had fought them off. But we could never find who that might be. K'Theelm had even speculated that the legendary Sailor Senshi may in fact be the ones. But ... your pardon, but until we met up with Venus two days ago we had no reason to believe you were anything but legends." "We like to keep a low profile," Venus said. "Mostly for the sake of our families. Sorry, I guess that made us kind of hard to track down." "I quite understand," Thetan assured her. "On our world, when an Avatar awakens to her powers and assumes office, her family is kept under guard lest the Avatars' enemies try to harm them. It's only right you would want to spare your own families that burden." "Well, operating in secret has its advantages," Venus said, winking at him. "Anyway, thank you for telling us about what happened on your world. Don't take this the wrong way, but I enjoyed the story even though it was such a sad one. I hope you can tell me some happier stories about your world sometime." "I would be glad to," Thetan said, smiling in return. "Right now, we would like to know how we can be of service to you." "I'm not sure it would be proper for us to ask for your service," Pluto said. Mars turned to her, having no idea what she was talking about. "Excuse me?" Pluto still addressed herself to the three aliens. "After what we have heard, I'm not sure it would be right for us to ask you to stay here any longer than you need to. Galaxia has no doubt restored your world as best she can. But she has hundreds, maybe thousands of worlds to restore. She probably can't afford to spend any more time at any world than she has to. She is most likely doing little more than returning each world to a livable state, and reviving the people from their Star Seeds. If I were her, that is what I would do, so that I could help as many worlds as quickly as possible. After she leaves your world, there will be much work to restore your civilization to what it was, probably many generations of work. They will need all the help that they can get. Clearly you are all very powerful and highly skilled in your own fields. They will have great need of warriors, healers and engineers. I would think your duty lies with them, not with us." They all seemed at a loss how to respond to this. Jeneth glanced at Sailor Moon, as if seeking guidance from her. But she looked even more taken aback by what Pluto said. "I ... didn't really think of that," Sailor Moon said slowly. "But Pluto's right, you're probably needed more on your own world. And from what Venus told me, these new enemies are no more powerful than others we've faced. We can take care of them ourselves, like we always have." "For the moment, it's a moot point," K'Theelm said. "I never thought we'd be leaving this world again, so a long time ago I directed my symbiont to put its star flight functions into dormancy. It will take me weeks to regenerate those functions and test them properly. In the meantime, please consider us at your service." "That's great," Venus said, sounding very relieved. "Until Mercury can figure out our own way of detecting these attacks, Jeneth can find them for us." "Mercury?" K'Theelm asked. "Oh yeah," Venus said, giving her head a rap with her knuckles. "I guess we haven't told you yet. There are more of us. There's Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. One for each planet, you know. Except Sailor Moon, she's kind of a special case." Mars suppressed a smile. Sailor Moon had given her veto power over whether they would trust the extraterrestrials with knowledge of the other Senshi. Her nod to Sailor Moon just before they explained what happened to all the Star Seeds had been her green light signal. Her impressions of them were very positive. And she found that the more they spoke together, the more she was getting to like all of them. "I see," K'Theelm said. "Is Mercury an engineer of sorts?" "Oh yeah," Venus said, rolling her eyes. "She's a mega-ultra-hyper engineer. And a doctor too, I think you and Jeneth will love her to death." "Venus, I don't think Mercury's medical skills will be relevant," Mars said, giving her a cold gaze. She was trying to obliquely suggest that Venus shouldn't be talking about their civilian identities. The apologetic look on her face indicated she understood. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Anyway, we should probably get her to rig up some way for you to contact us. Hopefully she can have it ready before sunset tomorrow, that's about the time all these attacks have been happening." Mars nodded. "Jeneth, when you detect an attack, how accurately can you place it?" "From a distance, I can only tell what part of the city. I have to get closer to be more accurate." "I can fly her to any part of the city in a matter of minutes," K'Theelm said. "Regretfully, my symbiont is best at long distance travel, so short distance jumps this close to a planet are out of the question." "It sounds to me like you should keep on doing what you have been doing," Mars said. "Just contact us as soon as you detect an attack and give us a more accurate position as you approach. Then we can come back you up as quickly as we can." "I think you're forgetting something," Pluto said. "Jeneth is a noncombatant. Even if she is willing, I don't think we can in good conscience ask her to enter a combat area. And she should not be left alone either, we know that these people can teleport whenever and wherever they want. The only safe solution I see is to have K'Theelm fly her close enough so that she can pinpoint the location, communicate that to us, then keep her at a safe distance." "I can keep us cloaked as we fly," K'Theelm reminded her. "We can approach without being detected." "Venus told us that your cloak is not perfect. And they may learn to see through it. My own feeling is that as soon as Jeneth thinks the attackers are any less than a kilometre away, you should keep her at that distance until we've made sure there is no further threat. Nobody but us should engage them directly." "I agree," Sailor Moon said. "We can't ask you to do more than that." Jeneth looked somewhat troubled, almost angry. Mars could almost believe she resented being coddled like this. But she just nodded. "If you think that's best." "These attacks take just a few minutes," Mars said. "We'll be hard pressed to get there before it's all over." "We'll have to do the best we can," Pluto said simply. "That is, assuming we decide to do anything at all." Mars glared at her openly. She was becoming very annoyed at how Pluto kept playing naysayer. "What do you mean?" "I have to question whether these attacks fall under our domain." "What do you mean, our domain?" Venus asked. She sounded almost as annoyed as Mars felt. "These criminals have some rather unusual powers, but they are in fact human. Their crimes are serious, but hardly constitute a threat against humanity. The purpose of the Sailor Senshi is to protect humanity from external forces that threaten its existence. This hardly applies." Mars couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Pluto, you can't expect us to do nothing just because of some technicality." "It's more than a technicality, it goes to the very meaning of our existence. Is it really our role to seek out human wrongdoers and bring them to justice?" "This is different!" Venus protested. "I fought them, remember? They were no ordinary humans, let me tell you." "What is ordinary? There are a great many people with paranormal powers, some families have it in their bloodline. They've always been around, but the few I've met taught me that they tend to be very secretive. That's why virtually nobody knows about them. I have seen people with the sorts of powers you describe. I assure you, they are as human as anybody else." "That doesn't sound like a good enough reason for not doing anything," Venus said. "I'm not suggesting nothing should be done," Pluto said. "I'm suggesting it's a matter for the proper authorities, not for us." "You mean the police?" Mars asked. "What can they do? They don't even know what they're facing. Besides, you know what they're like in this city. Anything looks just a little bit strange, they just back off and hope somebody else will take care of it, namely us. Then they go back and clean up the mess and tell everybody it was just some freak accident. They won't do anything, we're the only ones who can stop this." "That may be so," Pluto said. "Nevertheless, I don't think this warrants our attention. Whoever these people are, they seem to be little more than a combination of arsonist and art thief. They simply demolish shrines for their mystical energy or whatever you wish to call it. It's hardly worth putting ourselves at risk over." "How can you say that?" Mars snapped. "What they're doing is an abomination! The Earth has a soul just like we do, and they're ripping pieces out of it. If that doesn't fall under our domain, then what does?" Mars felt Venus squeeze her leg under the table. She was on the verge of turning and snapping at her too, when she realized what she was doing. She was losing control. She had been prepared to say a great deal more, but she bit it back. She just continued to glare at Pluto. Silently, she recited the mantras she would use to calm herself. "Pluto," Sailor Moon said. "Are you saying you won't help us?" "I am saying that we have no reason to get involved in this matter. I can only tell you what I think is right. Of course, I will abide by whatever decision you make." "I see." Her voice was quiet. She looked troubled. Mars felt so much like telling her there was no decision to make. But she already felt bad about having lost control like that. However unreasonable Pluto was being, she was raising legitimate concerns. "Pluto, I think you're right," Sailor Moon said with what sounded like great reluctance. "Technically, this isn't Sailor Senshi business. But I can't just sit by and do nothing. And I think Mars and Venus feel the same way." "Damned right," Venus said. "So we'll proceed as planned. But each of us has to decide whether we're going to help. I'm not going to ask anyone to take part in this if they don't think it's the right thing to do. Pluto, you've already told me what you think, and I accept that. I won't ask you to do anything further." "I am still opposed to this," Pluto said. "You are putting yourself at risk. But since you've framed it that way, I can hardly object. I'll contact Saturn and the others and let them know what you've said." "Fine, I'll contact Mercury and Jupiter. Thetan, by tomorrow I'm sure we can come up with some way for you to contact us. I can't thank you enough for helping us like this." "Not at all," Thetan said. "I wish we could do more than just sniff out the enemy four you." "No, Pluto's right. It's your job to protect Jeneth. I'd feel awful if anything happened to any of you before you went back home. Don't worry, with your help I'm sure we'll wrap this up long before you leave." "Perhaps we should adjourn for today," Pluto suggested. "Many of us have early morning engagements." *Gods, she's really talking like some damned corporate lawyer today* Mars thought. She didn't want to say anything here, but she was almost as mad at Sailor Moon as she was at Pluto. This was so typical of her, deciding not to decide. But once again, Pluto had raised a legitimate point. They said their goodbyes, and the Senshi left the way they had come in. They went back to the roof, across a couple of blocks over the rooftops, then back down to street level. In a secluded alley, they all transformed back. Usagi's transformation took just that extra second longer. She had managed to figure out how to transform into Super Sailor Moon instead of Eternal Sailor Moon, solving the problem of walking about with those great huge wings. Since that was no longer her natural form, it took extra concentration to shift in and out. "I'll contact Haruka and Michiru tomorrow," Setsuna said. "Can I assume they are free to make their own decision?" "Of course," Usagi said. "Fine, then I'll probably talk to you again tomorrow. Good night." She turned and walked out of the alley onto the street, headed towards where her car was parked. "That was cold," Minako muttered. "She was just full of attitude today. Couldn't get her to agree to anything. You ask me, you should have just told her she's helping us whether she likes it or not." "I couldn't do that," Usagi said. "She is right, you know. If Artemis hadn't heard those crows, we might never have gotten involved in this in the first place. It was just a fluke." "So what?" Venus protested. "Jeez, most of the enemies we fought we just stumbled onto by accident. This is no different." "Anyway, let's head for the car," Usagi said. They started walking towards where Usagi had parked Mamoru's car. "We won't be getting home until late, so I'll see if I can meet with Ami and Mako-chan tomorrow. They're both morning people, God help me, I'll probably have to meet them for breakfast." "I'm sure they'll back you up on this," Rei said. "But the others will probably follow Pluto's lead. They usually do. I just don't understand why she's being so pig-headed about this." "She pretty much told us why," Minako said bitterly. "She doesn't care about a few temples being demolished." "At least not enough to do anything about it," Rei said. Usagi sighed. "I guess she has her reasons." "Yeah," Minako said. "Problem is, we usually never find out what those reasons are until after it's all over." End Chapter 5 Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 6] Date: Mon, 05 Jan 1998 19:47:30 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- Secrets Chapter 6 - Wedding Dress "This must be the place," Smith said, seeing the police line barring entry to the temple grounds. "Yep, that's it." Takada parked his Mercedez beside the diminutive police car in front of the gate. "You about over your jet lag?" "I suppose. This is morning, isn't it?" "Last time I checked." "I guess we can get to work, then." They locked up the car and presented their credentials to the uniformed officer at the gate. He waved them in. Smith let out a low whistle. "They really did a number on this place." "Looks pretty much like the others." In other words, a pile of rubble. The grounds and the brick wall that surrounded them were untouched. "It's a good job you've kept the press photographers out of here. You'd have a hell of a time explaining this." Takada chuckled. "I wish I could take the credit, but that's just Metro Police S.O.P. for Weird Shit. No reporters get within a mile. Speaking of Metro, looks like our liaison has taken notice of us." A young woman in a business suit who had been speaking with another uniformed officer over by the ruins was now walking over to them. As she approached, Smith and Takada fished their badges out of their breast pockets. "I'm agent Takada, and this is agent Smith, Interpol." The woman did likewise. "Lieutenant Saori Nagashima, Metro Police. Feel free to call me Saori-kun if you're so inclined, everybody does. I was told to expect you, but I wasn't told much else. Would it be improper for me to ask why Interpol is interested in this horrid case?" "Of course, Saori-kun," Smith said, keeping his deadpan fully intact. "We're investigating possible links with cult activity in America and Canada." Saori cocked her head. "Cult activity?" She sighed. "As far as I know, no cult in America or anywhere else is in the habit of demolishing temples. Believe me, I checked. Not that they would have the wherewithal to do something like this anyway. May I ask why you think there may be a connection between American cults and these temples being demolished?" "We're just investigating at this point, Saori-kun," Smith said. "We won't be able to say more until we've had a look around." "And what exactly do you expect to find?" "We won't know that until we've looked around." Her scowl deepened. "Fine, whatever. Before I let you waste too much time, maybe I should bring you up to speed on what to expect from Sailor Senshi cases." Smith raised an eyebrow. "Sailor what?" "Oh, weren't you told? There was a Sailor Senshi sighting at this one. You've heard of them?" "Some local urban legend, if memory serves." "Right. Anyway, this is a typical Senshi case in most respects. First, no physical evidence. Just some property damage and no idea how it happened. The forensic reports are always interesting studies in how to say 'I haven't got a clue' in the most long-winded way possible. Next, no reliable eyewitnesses. Just lots of people saying there was a bunch of angelic little girls leaping tall buildings in a single bound. Any police sketches that get done always have them looking remarkably ... well, angelic. Lots of guys at the station have them pinned up on their bulletin boards, they're kind of cute. Oh, and lots of monster, too. I won't even bother describing those, since no two of them are ever the same. Next, no possible motive. Just some random property damage. This latest bunch is remarkable only in that they're all shrines or temples. No other connection. And finally, needless to say, no suspects. Anyway, that about sums it up. If there are no other questions, I'll leave you to it." There weren't. Saori called over the uniformed officer, and they both left the premises. Smith watched them leave. "Is it just me, or does she have a chip on her shoulder about this long?" "You can hardly blame her for being annoyed. Getting assigned to one of these cases is the kiss of death." "Why's that?" "What she said. They never get solved, period. I figure somebody in the force has it in for her. Metro Police isn't exactly an equal opportunity institution. For her to have gotten her rank at such a young age is remarkable. This could easily put her career into a nose-dive. No wonder she's pissed." "I thought maybe she just didn't like me." "Well, I keep telling you those shades make you look distant." Smith grinned, reached up and adjusted his sunglasses. "Force of habit I guess. They've been standard issue for American field agents for years. Psychological dominance and all that. But actually, these ones are new." "Meaning what?" Smith reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a leather glass case. He drew another set of tinted glasses out of it and held them out. "Try these." Takada shrugged. He took the sunglasses and put them on. His jaw dropped open. "So what do you see?" Smith asked. Takada scanned the grounds for a few moments. "Auras," he said softly. "I can see auras. Residual magical energy." "Not bad, huh?" "It's ... not as clear as using a spell, but still it's remarkable." "It's got to beat taking slices out of your hand." "Granted." Takada walked over to a part of the grounds that had been roped off with police tape. Smith followed. "It's a bit different, but I'd swear that's a spatial distortion residue," Takada said, pointing. "You got it. Pretty cold, probably will be gone by tomorrow. Small group of human sized entities teleported in and out. No surprise there, I guess." "Four this time, according to the footprints in the gravel. Two men, two women. Also, four others who appeared over there then disappeared. Again, two men and two women. One of those may have jumped from the wall, the one with sandals, which matches how this Sailor Venus character is described." "Takada, you sound like you're quoting a forensics report. You don't mean to say there's a Metro Police report that says a girl in sandals jumped off that wall and landed over there, do you?" "Despite her attitude, Saori is being very thorough. She's demanding that everyone in the case set down their observations and conclusions, however ridiculous they may look at face value. She had them go over every inch of this place before anything got touched and whip up a quick preliminary report. Probably so that people get their reports in before they even realize how impossible they sound. I think she really does want to find out what's going on here, whatever it takes." He noticed Smith's smile. "What?" "I know that tone. You've got your eye on her." Takada chuckled. "Like I said, for her to have gotten this far this fast, against the odds, she really must be something." "Think hard, Takada." "Why, just because she doesn't like you?" "I've always said you need a good sense of humour for this job. She hasn't got one. I can tell." "I think that's a cultural misunderstanding. We tend to show our sense of humour in more subtle ways." "I've seen what passes for comedy over here. Subtle, it ain't. So anyway, anything else of interest in miss supercop's report?" "It looks like the girl in sandles came close to getting backstabbed by one of the men in the first group. They figure she jumped back onto the wall then back off again." "Now that is interesting. Have we got two rival groups here, after the same thing?" "Or one group trying to stop the other from doing their business." "Which is?" Takada shrugged. "I guess that's the million yen question." "Right. I suppose we should do the standard walkabout here, but I doubt we'll find anything we don't already know. Sounds like we can depend on Saori-kun to gather the physical evidence, which is a welcome change." "And that's why she doesn't like you." "Come again?" Takada sighed. "How many years have you spent in this country?" "Three. Why?" "You ought to know she would detest being called Saori-kun." "But she said-" "Like I said," Takada interrupted, grinning, "our sense of humour is more subtle, including our sarcasm." Smith sighed. "There's just no pleasing people. I'm beginning to see why she's pissed at this case, though. We haven't a hope of catching these people in the act. There are hundreds of shrines and temples in this city." "Thousands, if you count the little ones. And even if we could keep them all under watch, we couldn't in good conscience suggest to Metro that they post officers in these places at night. They wouldn't stand a chance." "True enough. Which seems to leave us with exactly one lead. Your contact with the Ancients." Takada's face fell. "I was afraid you were going to bring that up." "You were the one who said some of them are likely to be involved." "Yes, that's true. They're the only family of paranormals we know of who might have people powerful enough to do something like this." "So what exactly is your relationship with this contact?" "It's the mother of the young boy I pulled out of that lab." Smith let out a low whistle. Everybody in the Hidden branch new about that story, it was the Tokyo office's claim to fame. A top secret government lab had gone rogue, secreting away a young boy who had scored positive on some PK tests. The poor, tormented boy had finally turned on his captors, releasing energies that could have caused a cataclysm. Takada had managed to wade through the rogue scientists' steaming pink entrails, and to find the boy, talk him out of nuking the whole city. "I take it you're on friendly terms with her." "Yes, we still meet every now and then. I also like to check up on her son." "How's he doing?" "He's still very withdrawn, poor kid. His powers never manifested again. I think we can all be grateful for that." "So may I assume it would not be inappropriate for you to make some polite inquiries on our behalf?" Takada smiled. "That was a delightfully indirect question. I think you're going native." "Bite me." "Anyway, shall we do our rounds so that I can give you your spare sunglasses back?" "Actually you can keep those, I requisitioned them specifically for you." "Oh fine, now everybody will think I'm a Yakuza." ***** "That was Michiru again," Hotaru said, hanging up the phone. "She says they just got onto the highway, they'll be here in about twenty minutes." "Okay," Setsuna said. She put down her book and stood up. "I guess we can start preparing things, then. Can you give me a hand?" "Sure." Hotaru followed Setsuna into the kitchen. They had already prepared what could be done ahead of time, it was just a matter of cooking what needed to be cooked and laying it out. It was a big meal, but heavy on green vegetables, which Setsuna had explained to her was best for relieving the effects of jet lag. Haruka and Michiru wouldn't eat airline food, so they would be starving. "They're a bit early," Hotaru said as she put on water for the miso soup. "Maybe they didn't get too badly mobbed at the airport." "They tried as best they could to keep their flight a secret. But with both of them cancelling events in Europe so suddenly, it was bound to attract attention. Reporters have their way of finding out." "Well, whatever they say, I know they both love the attention," Hotaru said. That very attention was the reason they hadn't gone to pick up their friends at the airport. Hers and Setsuna's lives revolved around carefully constructed false documents and false personal histories, each for different reasons. Neither of them could afford the close scrutiny that would no doubt follow being seen publicly with their much more famous friends. "I just feel kind of bad, they both had to cancel events they were really looking forward to." "Well, it can't be helped." Another of her enigmatic answers, Hotaru noted. It wasn't clear why exactly they needed Uranus and Neptune on hand. Setsuna seemed convinced both of them would make the same decision she did, not become involved in hunting down the ESPers. It seemed like they were coming back for nothing. "Just in case," was about all Setsuna would say. She had also extracted a promise from Hotaru not to make her own decision regarding the matter until the four of them had a chance to talk. Which was also puzzling. As far as she knew, Setsuna would be telling Haruka and Michiru the same things she told Hotaru just a few days ago. There was a gentle beep. Hotaru looked over at the home security panel on the living room wall. There was a flashing green light on the otherwise featureless black surface. Somebody had opened the front gate with a remote. That would be Haruka. Whenever she was abroad she had her convertible sportster kept in a garage near Narita airport, that way they wouldn't need to take a cab. "I'll go see them in, okay?" Hotaru said. Setsuna smiled knowingly, noting Hotaru's eagerness. "Go ahead, I'll finish setting things out." Hotaru hung her apron in the kitchen closet and ran through the house to the garages. When she arrived, Haruka had just killed the engine. They were parked in between the sedan and the minivan. The garage door was just closing. Hotaru flipped on the main garage lights on the way in. "Haruka, Michiru! Welcome back!" Michiru waved. "Good to see you again, Hotaru-chan." "Hey, Hotaru," Haruka called, already getting out of the car. "Long time no see. Looks like you've grown some more." Hotaru made a face. "You always say that, even when you've only been gone a few weeks." Haruka winked. "You miss us?" "You know I do. Let me help you carry your stuff in." "The heavy luggage is arriving later," Michiru said. "You must have carry-ons, though." Haruka chuckled. "Nice try. We don't unwrap the souvenirs until after we get fed." "Same goes for the duty free," Michiru added, walking back to the trunk. Haruka reached down over the door and pulled the lever that popped the trunk. "Well, I don't think Hotaru's interested in that." Hotaru pouted. "You know, chronologically I'm eighteen now." "Which still isn't twenty-one," Michiru noted. "That never stopped you," Hotaru said. She reached out her hand, and Michiru handed her one of the packages with a smile of gratitude. "We're just trying to make sure you don't repeat the mistakes of our own misspent youth," Haruka assured her. She slung the last of the carry- on bags over her shoulder and closed the trunk. They all started making their way over to Haruka and Michiru's room, which Hotaru had just finished cleaning up for them today. "Did you bring back any pictures?" "Plenty," Michiru said. "Especially from around the Black Sea, we spent a week touring there." Hotaru frowned. "You never told us about that. There's a civil war going on around there, isn't it dangerous?" "There are some areas we had to avoid," Haruka said. "Besides, if we really got into a pinch we could just transform and beat up anybody who gives us attitude." Hotaru sighed. "I thought you were supposed to be role models for me. Do you at least have the pictures with you?" "Yes," Michiru said. "But like Haruka said, we don't open up anything until we get fed." They put all the packages down on the dresser in the bedroom. Haruka put her arm around Hotaru and steered her back out towards the dining room. "But after dinner, the first thing I want to see is this bridesmaid's dress you've been raving about." "And I want to see yours!" Hotaru said, grinning up at her. "Not until the rest of the luggage arrives tomorrow," Michiru said. "You haven't told me anything about them," Hotaru complained. Over the phone she had described in excruciating detail the dress she had chosen, but the other two had been very mysterious. Haruka grinned. "It'll be worth the wait, you'll see." Setsuna had dinner waiting for them. They dragged it out, making it last insufferably long. Mainly because Setsuna was bringing Haruka and Michiru up to speed on what had been happening. She described Venus' encounter with the ESPers and the extraterrestrials. Then she related what they had learned from the extraterrestrials, in somewhat greater detail than she had related to Hotaru a few days ago. She gave what seemed to be almost a word for word account of her subsequent argument with the inner Senshi and how it was resolved. Haruka and Michiru had been almost silent during all this, only asking the occasional question. Hotaru had cleared away the remains of dinner while Setsuna spoke, they were now drinking tea. "We have some news of our own," Michiru said. "Yesterday, I had the same vision again. This time it was unmistakable." "Vision?" Hotaru asked hesitantly. Michiru looked at her. "I'm sorry Hotaru, I didn't say anything to you because I wasn't really sure. But now I am sure. It was a vision of the Crystal Palace." Hotaru gasped. "You mean ... *the* Crystal Palace? Crystal Tokyo?" She nodded. "Yes. It's exactly as Pluto described it." Her use of Setsuna's title put Hotaru on edge. It was a signal that things were serious. There was obviously something going on that Hotaru didn't know about yet. "Pluto, can you tell us what it means?" Haruka asked. Her tone implied she had some reason to believe Setsuna did indeed have an answer. "Yes, I believe I can." Setsuna paused, her expression became very grim. "I need you all to understand that in telling you these things I am violating a sacred trust I have held for several years. Before I continue, I need your solemn oaths that none of what I say will go beyond this room." Hotaru looked to see Haruka and Michiru both nodding. Suddenly they were all looking at her, waiting. "Yes, I promise," Hotaru said quickly. She felt even more uneasy now. "I know who is destroying the temples and why they are doing it." Hotaru's heart was fluttering. *She knew?* "Setsuna ... !" The piercing stare of those red eyes stopped her cold. Setsuna's expression implied she should be careful what she asked. She tried to calm herself, frame her question in a reasonable way. "Pluto, how long have you known?" "I found out shortly before I met with the extraterrestrials." So she knew even then. While they were all talking about it, trying to figure out a way to fight them. "Why ... why did you keep it a secret?" "I believe that will become clear." Once again, she addressed herself to all three of them. "The people attacking these temples are four members of a family of paranormals called the Ancients. I have had dealings with several generations of this family. Over the past few years I have had repeated meetings with a particular member of this family. This is the confidence I spoke of earlier. I cannot even tell you her name. She knows who and what I am. To a limited degree, she knows about us. Not our identities, obviously. We have exchanged information where appropriate. I have warned her about the times when her people should avoid the Juban area or other areas. ESPers tend to invite attack from paranormal beings, you see, they are in greater danger than most. In exchange, she has shared visions from sensitives and precognitives in her family, visions I have found useful. "A week ago, I mentioned to her that the Senshi had become involved in one of the attacks on the temples. I had already suspected, but she confirmed that the attackers were in fact Ancients, and they were operating with her knowledge." "And she told you why they are doing this?" Haruka asked. "Yes. The Ancients possess an artifact known as the Seed Crystal, something that has been in their family for many centuries at least. It appears to be a source of visions, something like Neptune's talisman. Four years ago, after Chaos was released from Galaxia's body, it suddenly started emanating a vision of the Crystal Palace." "Have you told her about Crystal Tokyo?" Michiru asked. She sounded anxious. "No. I simply told her that I have seen the Palace before, nothing more. Some weeks ago, I suspect by accident, some of the Ancients found that if they extracted the life force of a holy place and brought it before the Seed Crystal, it would strengthen and clarify the vision." "So they hope to learn the meaning of the vision," Michiru said. "More than that. They hope to bring the Crystal Palace into being." "What?" Haruka sat upright, her whole body suddenly tense. "How do they expect to do that?" "My contact shared the vision with me, telepathically. Don't worry, she would be unable to read my mind, even if she tried. The vision was sharp enough, even seen indirectly, to convince me that the Seed Crystal is more than just an oracle of sorts. I believe that the Seed Crystal *is* the Crystal Palace. Or rather, its purpose is to become the Crystal Palace." They sat in silence for a few moments. Haruka and Michiru looked very troubled. And rightly so. The implications of this were just starting to sink in. "By obtaining the life force of more holy sites and bringing it before the Seed Crystal, the Ancients hope to make it reveal exactly how the Crystal Palace can be brought into being." "Do you think they could really do that?" Haruka asked. "It's possible. I honestly don't know. All I know is, they mean to try." Michiru leaned forward. "You don't intend to stop them." It was a statement, not a question. "Correct." "Gods ..." Haruka breathed. "Pluto ... you have to tell us, this is too important to keep us in the dark. Do you know that this is the way that the Crystal Palace is supposed to come into being?" Setsuna sighed. She let her poker face slip a little. Hotaru saw sadness, and ... a flash of what she would not quite describe as fear. "Uranus, in truth, I don't know. I know the future for which we are striving, but there are many possible paths to it. This may be one of those paths." "Do you have any idea where this Seed Crystal is?" Michiru asked. Hotaru didn't like the look in her eyes, didn't want to think of the reason for asking the question. "No. They've kept it hidden for centuries, it is their most closely guarded secret." "So that means if they truly can bring the Palace into being, it will be under their control," Haruka said. The look in her eyes was even more disturbing than that of her partner. "It will be in their possession," Setsuna agreed. "Not necessarily under their control. Remember, the Palace is truly enormous. If they bring it into being, wherever it might be, they will no longer be able to keep it a secret. Its location will be revealed to us." "They must be doing this for a reason," Haruka said. "They figure it will be a source of power for them or something. I don't imagine they'll sit by and let us or anybody else just walk up and move in." "No, I would think not." Setsuna said. "If they really can do this, then all bets are off. The appearance of the Crystal Palace would change everything, not just for us but for the whole world. It's impossible to predict what would happen at that point. We would just have to play it by ear." "Pluto, I just don't get it," Haruka said. "It sounds like you're playing dice with our future, everybody's future. You just admitted you have no idea what might happen if you let the Ancients continue what they're doing. Why are you so determined to let them try this?" "Because we may need the Palace soon." "What do you mean?" Hotaru asked. She suddenly heard an intake of breath and glanced at Haruka. She looked as if something dreadful had occurred to her, as if she knew what Setsuna's answer would be. Setsuna glanced at Haruka and nodded, as if confirming her unspoken fear. "The effects of the release of Chaos are still with us, and will get worse before they get better. There is a better than even chance that within the next few years, global civilization will collapse entirely." "You mean to have the Palace for a sanctuary," Michiru said. "A sanctuary against a new Dark Age." "More than that," Setsuna said. "If a new Dark Age does come, it would fall upon us to help the Princess forge a new order out of that chaos, to bring her future kingdom into being. With the power and protection of the Palace at our command, we would have a much better chance of success. Without it, Crystal Tokyo may never come into being." "It still sounds like a craps shoot," Haruka said. "My God, if that thing really does appear can you imagine the panic it would cause? You keep telling us how fragile our peace is, that sounds like just the sort of thing that would shatter it." "I agree, there is a risk," Setsuna said. "Yet the risk of the collapse is there regardless of what we do. If the collapse comes, and the Palace has not come into being, it may be lost to us forever. That we absolutely cannot allow to happen." "Something is troubling me," Michiru said. "You make it sound like the Ancients had no idea what the Seed Crystal really might be until recently. That seems to suggest that they didn't create it themselves, they simply obtained it somehow. Which begs the question, who did build it?" "I can only speculate," Setsuna said. "It could very well date from the time of the Silver Millennium. At the time I had heard rumours of sorcery being used to create crystals that could be commanded to absorb matter and energy from around them, to grow and assume certain shapes. This could very well be one of those artifacts. Even once the palace becomes ours, we may never know to whom we owe its existence." "The Princess will never go for this." They all looked at Haruka. She looked to be awaiting a reply from Setsuna. "Won't go for what, exactly?" Setsuna asked calmly. "Any of it. Letting the Ancients demolish more temples, letting them try and create the Crystal Palace. It's all premised on us preparing for the end of civilization, and she just won't buy into that." Hotaru felt her stomach flutter as she caught on to what Haruka wasn't saying. She was no longer arguing with Setsuna's plan, her question was a tactical one. She had already accepted the necessity of what Setsuna was planning. From Michiru's look of calm resolve, she had accepted it as well. "That's why you didn't tell her," Hotaru said, surprising herself by the amount of anger that showed through in her voice. Hotaru had expected reproof, but Setsuna's face showed only sympathy and patience. "Saturn, do you know what is the source of the Princess' strength?" Hotaru was taken aback by the question. "The Ginzuishou." "The Ginzuishou is only a tool. How is it that she uses it to help people, not to hurt people?" "How? I don't know what you mean. She would never use it to hurt people." Setsuna nodded. "That's right. It would never even occur to her to try. It is her innocence that ensures the Ginzuishou will never be used to harm people. But that innocence comes at a price. There are certain things she simply cannot do. She cannot stand by and allow acts of evil to be committed. She would very simply refuse to believe that a malevolent act could eventually lead to a positive result. She doesn't have it in her to believe that. Just consider what she would do if I told her what I have told you." Hotaru thought about that very carefully. The others simply waited, giving her all the time she needed. At length, Hotaru bowed her head, unable to meet their gaze. "She would try to stop them," she said very quietly. "She is going to try regardless of what we tell her," Michiru reminded them. "They all are." Hotaru stared at the table. *They,* she thought sadly. Not *we* any more. "That's the problem," Haruka said. "And even if Mercury doesn't figure out some way to track the Ancients, they've got those E.T.s to help them now. Eventually, they're going to get into a scrap. If that happens, we'll have to help the Princess, whether she wants our help or not." She framed it not as an argument but as a simple statement of fact. Which it was. "I think I can arrange things so that there won't be any further conflicts," Setsuna said. "We can't do anything that puts the Princess in any more danger than she's already putting herself in," Haruka said. Again, just a statement of fact. "She won't be in any danger, not if I can help the Ancients escape detection in the first place." "How can you do that?" Michiru asked. "By dropping a hint in the right place." ***** "What, she's coming here *again*?" Rei asked. "They both are," her grandfather said, smiling up at her. "Usagi-san wants to do another walkthrough of the ceremony, and she needs Mamoru-san with her to do that." Rei sighed. "That's the second time this *week*. I'll bet she's using this as an excuse to skip classes." "Oh, I think she's just nervous, that's all. Since you're here, you might as well participate too." "I've already practiced more than enough, I can do it in my sleep now. The maid of honour doesn't have to do a whole lot." "Actually I thought you might do one walkthrough as the bride, show her how it's done." *Oh yeah, that would go over with Usagi just dandy.* "I don't think that would be appropriate, grandpa." Her grandfather rubbed his chin thoughtfully, looking up into the sky. "Perhaps Mamoru-san would benefit from having somebody show him the groom's role. When Yuichirou gets back-" "Grandpa!" Rei tightened her grip on her bamboo broom. "Just a thought." He groaned and stretched, making a production out of it. "These old bones ache more and more each year." He folded his arms, scanned the temple grounds. "I'm going to have to step down sooner or later," he said wistfully. "I really have to start thinking about who will be succeeding me." Compared to some of the other hints he had been dropping since Usagi's wedding date was decided on, this one had been downright subtle. "That won't be for a long time, grandpa." "Well, hopefully I can stick around long enough to see all your other friends married off too." *Oh boy.* "Don't hold your breath. They're all career girls now." Though from what she'd been hearing, they might expect to hear news from Ami sometime soon. "Well, I can only hope that Usagi-san's example will inspire more of you to take the same path." Rei spotted somebody climbing the steps that led down to street level, and silently gave thanks to whichever Kami had saved her this day. "Grandpa, it looks like Ichiro-san is here to visit." Her grandfather looked over to the gate at the top of the steps, and smiled. "Why, so he is." Without further ado, he walked over to greet his old friend. Rei noticed he was walking with a slight limp. Probably overdid things in his morning exercises again. Hori Ichiro wore the dark robes of a Buddhist priest, which contrasted with her grandfather's white robes. Ichiro was even shorter and chubbier than her grandfather, which was really saying something. And just as bald. Rei would swear his head and body formed two perfect circles. They came to a halt right where they met and started talking. Great, that would keep him busy for a while. Rei continued her sweeping. She glanced across the grounds to spot Miho doing the same. She smiled. The first of the autumn leaves were just starting to fall. It was beginning to dawn on poor Miho just what she had gotten herself into by joining a shrine with such heavily wooded grounds. She had just about reached the shrine building when she spotted Yuichirou walking towards her. They both waved. He wore his usual white acolyte's robe and sandles. Some time ago she had convinced him to wear his hair just a bit shorter. You could actually glimpse both his eyes now if you looked hard. He carried the big parcel she had been expecting. "Thanks for your trouble," she said. "Not at all." He handed her the paper box tied with ribbons. "I checked, they said they were able to do all the alterations you asked for." "Well I hope so, I'm sure paying them enough." It would be worth it, though. "They couldn't believe it when I told them this was going to be a bridesmaid's dress." "Well, Usagi said do your own thing, so that's what I'm doing." Actually, it was more like Usagi giving up on all eight of them agreeing on the same style of dress. "I spotted your grandfather and Ichiro-san on the way in. They didn't even notice me." "I don't think they'd notice if a brass band paraded by them. Probably arguing about whether the Buddhas are the true forms of the Kami or the Kami are the true forms of the Buddhas." "How long have they been at it?" "Less than half an hour." "I guess we'll have to go dump water on them or something when the happy couple gets here." Rei chuckled. Yes, they would be there until sunset otherwise. Unless their legs gave out from standing there. Grandpa was still in fine shape, but was getting more aches and pains these days. "You know, it's kind of nice," Yuichirou said, a fond smile growing on his face. Rei raised an eyebrow. "What's that?" "It's kind of nice to think that two people could disagree for fifty years and still be close like that." Rei returned his smile, stepped a little closer. "Yeah. That is a very nice thought, isn't it?" She suddenly regretted that her hands were full. He divested her of the broom. "You'd better go try that dress. I'll take over leaf detail." "Thanks. I'll see you tonight." She went up on her toes to give him a quick kiss. Then she turned to walk to the temple residence. As she walked, her smile slowly faded. Her grandfather wasn't the only one dropping hints these days. *I'm sorry, Yuichirou.* She glanced at the box she carried. *Maybe when this is over and done with ... maybe then I'll have the courage.* She removed her sandals at the door, walked a ways down the corridor, and slid aside the panel leading to the room that had been requisitioned for the preparations. She closed the door behind her, then turned to look at it for a moment. The wedding dress. Of course for the ceremony Usagi would be wearing what was appropriate for a traditional Shinto ceremony. The elaborate kimono was packed away in a nearby cupboard. What the black mannequin in the centre of the room wore was the dress Usagi would wear at the reception. Rei glanced at the box again and smiled. *A matched set.* She went behind the screen and opened up the box. She hung the dress up on a hanger and inspected it. Almost impossible to see where the alterations were made. Great. She removed her red and white priestess' robes, stripping down to her underwear. She relaxed considerably when she had the dress on. A perfect fit. She examined herself in the full-length mirror and smiled. Yes, this would be perfect. She glanced at the make-up kit sitting on a desk nearby. What the hell, might as well see how this looks for real. A little while later she was inspecting herself in the full-length mirror again. She still had a vague feeling that something was missing. It was annoying her. After some more craning her neck seeing what it looked like from the side, it suddenly hit her. The hair. She grinned. Oh yeah, she could just imagine herself doing that. It was out of the question for the wedding ... but somehow she was just dying to see how that would look. It took more work than she had thought. After three tries, and some creative use of hairpins, it looked about as good as it was going to get. She shook her head as she examined the results in the mirror. No, it definitely lost something in the translation. "Rei-chaaan. It's meee." Usagi's voice came closer. Rei could hear her footsteps coming down the corridor. Rei looked in the mirror and grinned from ear to ear. Yes, the Kami are in a playful mood today. Best not disappoint them. Rei heard the door slide open. "Rei-chan, you in here?" Rei leaped out from behind the screen and struck a pose. "Stop right there! How dare you enter this sacred place uninvited! The wedding dress expresses the hopes and dreams of all young girls who wait for their prince charming! In the name of the moon, I will punish you!" Usagi looked like she had been struck by lightning. After a moment the corners of her mouth started going up. She snickered. Then they both lost it. After spending about half a minute doubled over laughing, Rei managed to stagger over to a table and grab a tissue. She dabbed the tears out of her eyes before they could smear her makeup. Usagi stood up straight, her wheezing just about done. Her face was still flushed. "Rei, where did you *get* that?" "I bought it years ago. Never had the nerve to wear it, though. It had a shorter skirt then, I had to have some major alterations done to get it like this." Usagi gasped. "I remember now!" She glanced at the wedding dress, pointed to it, then to Rei. "They ... it ... they're both-" "Right, both designed by Usui Yoshiki." That was the fashion designer they had rescued from one of the Amazon Trio, back when they and Chibi-moon were fighting them. Soon after that he had designed a wedding dress, which Usagi's was patterned after. At the same time, his encounter with Sailor Moon had inspired Usui to design a white, blue and red dress patterned on Sailor Moon's outfit. Rei's dress was essentially the same one, but with a new skirt that went just above the knees. "Wow. It's, uh ... still pretty short." "It would ruin the effect if the hem were any lower. I compromised." Usagi smiled again. It was different this time. Not amusement, but warmth. "Rei, it's perfect. You'll look beautiful." "Thanks." Usagi's smile faded a bit. She looked a bit embarrassed. "Uh, I'm wondering though, are you really planning to do your hair up like that?" "Gods, no! I just did this for fun. How do you like it?" She reached up and patted one of the buns she had curled her hair into, slightly larger versions of the odangos Usagi always wore her hair in. The pigtails that emerged from them certainly could not compare to Usagi's, they only went about halfway down her back. Usagi cocked her head, rubbed her chin meditatively. "I think I liked it better the way it was before." "Well, I should think so." Usagi giggled. "At least you did a better job than when Venus tried it." Yes, Rei remembered that well. "That was a rush job done under duress." It had been part of an on the spot plan to have Venus impersonate Sailor Moon, back when they were fighting the Death Busters. "I mean, the pigtails didn't even match," Usagi said. "That was because I did one of them while Jupiter did the other, we didn't even have time to check our work." Usagi crossed her arms, made a face of mock haughtiness. "Well, I hope this made you appreciate how much work I put into achieving this look." "Yes, your odangoness. So anyway, what brought you in here?" Usagi hesitated for just a moment. "Oh, I just wanted to come see you for a second before we go practice the ceremony." "Isn't Mamoru-san with you?" "He's parking the car. I told him I'd meet him at the shrine." Usagi was answering her questions almost tonelessly. She looked preoccupied. Definitely she was nervous about something. And not just wedding jitters. "Was there something you needed from here?" She shook her head. "No. There was just something I wanted to ask you." "Yes?" Usagi's eyes dropped down to the floor. She was fidgeting. Rei had a bad feeling about this. Usagi met her eyes again, with some effort. "Rei-chan, are you happy?" Rei blinked. She didn't know quite what to make of the question. "Why are you asking me this, all of a sudden?" "I just want to know if you're happy. I mean, with the way your life is going." Rei sighed. "I think we should go sit down." In this mess there actually were two cushions next to a table with not too much clutter on it. They both sat down. Usagi was still looking nervous. "Usagi, this is about Mamoru and me, isn't it?" Usagi just nodded. Rei reached out and took her hand. She took just a moment to review the long rehearsed words. "I'll just tell you the truth, Usagi. Even if we really do live a thousand years, I will never, ever love anybody as I love you and Mamoru. It's that simple. I'll just have to deal with it, that's all." Usagi's expression became even more troubled. She almost looked to be in pain. "Rei, I would rather die than do anything to hurt you," she said softly. Rei counted two slow breaths, using the breathing exercise to calm herself. She had no doubt at all that Usagi meant that literally. After all this time it still frightened her, the intensity, the completeness with which Usagi loved them all. "Usagi, the only way you could hurt me is by not marrying the man you love and raising a lovely pink-haired daughter." "But you love him too." *Here comes the hard part.* "Yes, just as much as I love you." Usagi shook her head. "That's different." Rei slid a little closer and took Usagi's other hand, clasping them both firmly. "Usagi, let me tell you something. If, God forbid, you and Mamoru were to break up, I would have a very, very hard decision to make." Usagi frowned. "Decision?" "Which one of you to try and seduce." She leaned forward and gave Usagi a kiss that was just long enough to show that she meant it. She backed away just a couple of centimetres, no more. Usagi went slack-jawed. Her face turned beet red with astonishing speed. Rei would swear she could feel the heat radiating off Usagi's face. "Rei ... I ... Uh ... Um ... Oh ... I see." Rei sat up straight again, released Usagi's hands and smiled. "I'm really happy I'll never have to make that decision." "Right. Good. Uh, thanks." "No problem." "I'd better go now, Mamo-chan is probably waiting for me." "Yes, he probably is. Drop by for some tea later, okay?" "Sure." Usagi got up. Her colour was almost back to normal, but she still looked rather dazed. She made her way through the mess to the door. She even remembered to say goodbye and to close the door behind her. Rei took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Well, that had gone fairly well. Almost anti-climactic, really. For a long time she had anticipated Usagi asking her about this, prepared herself for it. Now, it was finally laid to rest. Hopefully. She stood and stretched. Time to put the dress away. She felt sad somehow. She'd been having such fun with it on, it was like a party coming to an end. Rei spotted something on the table. She groaned. "That airhead." Usagi had forgotten her purse. Well, this time she could hardly be blamed. Rei had played the shock value of her confession for all it was worth. Rei went back behind the screen to change. She had just about finished putting the dress back into the box when she heard footsteps in the hallway. The door slid open. Back sooner than expected. Rei walked around the screen. "Honestly Usagi, if your head wasn't attached to your neck you would ... oh." Mamoru stood in the doorway, looking very astonished. Rei was suddenly very conscious of being in nothing but her underwear. Neither of them moved. Then Mamoru's expression brightened. He started laughing. Rei put her hands on her hips, suddenly not caring about how embarrassing this was. "Do you find something amusing, buster?" "If ... If you dyed it ..." that was all he got out before doubling over in another fit of laughter. *Oh Gods, the hair.* An image of what she must look like flashed through her head. Standing in her underwear with heavy makeup and her hair in odangos. She lost it again. This time it was almost painful, her stomach still ached from her first laughing fit. In spite of the delightful moment, in the midst of her uncontrollable laughter, she still felt awkward about her state of undress. There was a yukata hanging on a rack, from when Usagi had been in here trying on her kimono. Rei stepped over to it and tripped over a box. "Whoa ... !" Already doubled over, she was hopelessly unbalanced. She flailed her arms as she went staggering headlong, straight for the wedding dress. Mamoru came out of nowhere, intercepting her at the last moment. They both went tumbling down to the floor. Incredibly, he managed to avoid any of the clutter on the floor and to also break her fall. He grunted as her weight knocked the wind out of him. Rei untangled herself from him and levered herself up on her arms. She shook her head, trying to clear it. Nothing hurt badly, she must be okay. She looked at Mamoru lying next to her. He was just getting his wind back. He met her gaze and they both smiled. An instant later they both realized their mistake. But it was too late. Rei involuntarily snickered, priming the positive feedback loop. Her arms gave out and she dropped back down next to him. This time it was more wheezing than laughing, neither of them had much breath left. Rei didn't think she could stand up even if she wanted to. After a minute or so, she managed to at least sit back up again. "Are you okay?" Mamoru nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." He also pushed himself up into a sitting position. "I'm sorry, I feel so stupid." "It was my fault for barging in like that. I really should have knocked." Rei was about to agree, when she spotted something more pressing. "Oh my God, your shirt! Look!" Mamoru looked down to where she was pointing. She had gotten lipstick on the front of his white dress shirt when she fell on him. "Take it off, quick. I've got something that will keep it from staining." "Aren't you supposed to soak it?" Mamoru asked, already unbuttoning the shirt. "I've got something better. Now where is it?" She went to one of the tables and started rummaging through the small boxes there. "Ah, here." She took a small vial out and walked back to where Mamoru sat on the bamboo floor. He already had the shirt off. Rei sat down and took it from him. She inspected it quickly, making sure it was just that one spot. Then she laid it on the floor and opened up the vial. "It's something from the former Rising Wind company," she explained as she carefully squeezed drops of the milky liquid onto the red stain. "Some nano-goo that binds with the stain, or something like that. You just have let it dry for a few minutes. Then wash it later on." "Thanks." "No problem." Rei reached over and put the vial on a low table nearby. Stretching out on the floor suddenly seemed more appealing than sitting back up again. She let out a long groan. Mamoru grinned at her. "My, don't we look like we've been up to something naughty." Yes, they certainly did. Rei just felt too comfortable lying there to go do anything about her state of undress. "It's not like you to barge in without knocking." "I wasn't expecting to find you here. Usagi sent me over here to pick up her handbag. She told me she had come here looking for you, but you weren't here." "What? But I was just talking to ..." her voice trailed off, as the realization hit her. She suddenly sat bolt upright. She saw the same look on Mamoru's face. As one, they pointed to each other and exclaimed "She set us up!" Rei just shook her head in disbelief. "I didn't think she had it in her." "I thought something was fishy," Mamoru said. "There was something in her smile, almost like satisfaction or triumph." "Maybe she was just getting even." "For what?" Rei sighed. The circumstances were far from ideal, but she would have to talk to him sometime. "She came in here to ask about us." "Oh." Mamoru's expression sobered. "What did you tell her?" "Exactly what I told you." That had been years ago. Mamoru had come to her asking much the same questions, though rather less awkwardly than Usagi had. "How did she take it?" "Hard to tell. I'm not even sure if she believed me. It looked as if she would need some time to digest what I told her. If this little trick of hers is a message, I'm not sure what to make of it." Mamoru smiled. "I think it means that whether she believed you or not, she's satisfied with the answer you gave her. She hasn't said in so many words, but she's really been worried about you." "I know, I could tell too. I hope I've set her mind at ease," she said quietly, really meaning it. "We're so lucky, having a friend like you," Mamoru said softly. Rei returned his smile. She was almost at the point now where she no longer felt regretful about Mamoru seeing her as a friend, almost at the point where it was enough. Rei heard something drop. She turned her head, and suddenly her heart leaped up into her throat. Minako was holding onto the door she had just opened. The package she had dropped lay on the floor beside her. The look on her face was appropriate for somebody who had just stumbled on an act of cannibalism in progress. Her arm shot up and she pointed at Rei, sighting down her finger like it was a gun. "Rei! How could you let this happen?" "Minako-" Rei and Mamoru both stopped in mid sentence, each hoping to God the other could think up something more original than 'this isn't what you think.' Minako strode into the room, her clenched fists swaying at her sides. She kicked another box aside as she went. She didn't seem to notice. Minako thrust her finger out at Rei again. "We all trusted you Rei, and now look at what you've done!" "Minako-" "We do everything we can to make sure they have every possible kind of good luck, and this is what you do!" Rei blinked. *Good luck?* "Huh?" "Don't you 'huh' me, Rei! You're a priestess now, you're supposed to know these things! Oh Gods, you can't tell me you actually don't know!" Rei shook her head, utterly lost. "Know what?" "It's bad luck for the groom to see the dress before the wedding, that's what!" Rei just stared back at her. She didn't know whether she should laugh or cry. Just at the moment she was too stunned to do either. "Well what have you got to say for yourself?" "Minako, it's only bad luck if he sees her in the dress," Rei said calmly. Minako's look of outrage faded. "Are you sure?" "Yes. I looked it up." "Oh." Minako relaxed. Her anger vanished like a popped balloon. "Well, I guess that's okay then." "Is that by any chance your bridesmaid's dress?" Mamoru asked, pointing at the big box Minako had dropped. There was a hint of fear in his voice. Rei could imagine him being unsure about this attempt to divert the attention of the unpredictable girl. "Oh, right." Minako went back to retrieve it. "I just wanted to store it here for now, is that okay?" "Sure," Rei said. "You can just leave it over there." "Okay." She put it down on the table Rei had indicated. She glanced over at Mamoru's shirt lying on the floor. "Hmmm. Lipstick on cotton, huh? You know, once that nanogoop dries you can get it off with a fine-bristled brush, you don't have to wait until you wash it. I'd suggest doing that, you might have trouble explaining that stain to Usagi." She winked, flashed a wicked smile. Rei held up her hand. "Minako, it's not-" "I've gotta run, I promised Usagi I'd help her with the rehearsal. Mamoru, see you there in a few minutes?" "Yeah." "Okay. Have fun, you two." She blew them a kiss, twirled around and walked briskly through the door, closing it smartly behind her. The two of them just stared at the door for a few moments. "Rei?" "Yeah?" "Do you sometimes find Minako scary?" "Oh yeah. Being with her can be like chugging enriched essence of Usagi. Anyway, I think we should take her advice." She found an appropriate brush and went to work. It was coming off like it was just powder. "I didn't know it would work this fast. I wonder how she found that out?" "Why don't you ask her sometime?" "Pass." She looked up from her work. Mamoru met her eyes, and realized she had seen where he had been looking. He smiled sheepishly. "Sorry." Rei smiled in return. "I suppose you're wondering about this." She pointed at the mark that was half hidden by her bra. "Well ... yeah." "Don't worry, I don't mind." She put down the brush and reached up to carefully push back the fabric of her bra just enough to reveal the rest of the tiny tattoo. It was a little red rose on a green stem etched over the top of her right breast. "It's beautiful. When did you have that done?" "It was shortly after you had been taken by Queen Beryl. Surprised?" "Well, to be honest, you're the last person I'd expect to go get a tattoo. And you were barely fifteen at the time. Was it just a whim?" Rei smiled. "No, there was a purpose behind this. It's hard to explain, but it was a kind of tribute to you, or maybe a memento. After that day at Starlight Tower I pretty much knew I had lost you. I mean, even if we could get you back, you were destined for the Princess. Either I would end up having to kill you in battle, or if you broke the hold Beryl had on you, I would have to give you up to Usagi. I had this silly notion that this rose would be my little secret, never ever seen or touched by anyone." "And is it still your little secret?" Mamoru asked playfully. "Hmph. None of your damned business, buster." "Well, I'm honoured." Mamoru did a little sleight of hand move and suddenly there was a red rose in his hand. He held it out to her. "Just to say thanks for everything." She accepted it, a little astonished. "Thank you. I didn't know you could do that if you weren't Tuxedo Mask." "I can only do ordinary roses like this, not the ones I love to embed in concrete." Rei took in the flower's scent. Yes, it was genuine. Just for the hell of it, she decided to put it in her hair, just below the odango on her left. "Now I've got a matching set." "Just promise me something, okay?" Mamoru asked. "What's that?" "Wear the rose if you must, but please let your hair back down before you step out of the room." "Deal." Rei picked up her brush again and continued brushing off the powder that the stain remover had left on his shirt. Mamoru reclined on a cushion, getting more comfortable while he waited for her. "Usagi told me Ami's rigged up a communicator for the extraterrestrials," he said. "Yes, she took it over to them a couple of days ago." Ami and Makoto had gone over to their apartment in their Senshi form, both to introduce themselves to their new allies and to give Jeneth the communicator Ami had made for them. Since then Jeneth had been checking in twice daily as arranged, but there had been no other occasion to use the device. "I suppose you heard what Setsuna had to say about all this." "Yes. Usagi's rather upset about it. She's beginning to wonder if Pluto might be right." Rei glanced up from her work. "Do you think she's right?" "I can see her point, but I don't know how she can back it up. I mean, there isn't exactly a body of law defining what the Sailor Senshi should and should not be doing. She's just making a personal value judgement, same as Usagi is." "But what do *you* think?" "Usagi has never led us wrong. I believe in her." Rei smiled. They didn't need to say more. She looked closely at her work one last time. "Well, you should still wash it, but that should do it for now." "Thanks." Mamoru took back the shirt and stood up to put it on. Rei walked over to where the yukata was hanging and put it on, just in case anybody else decided to barge in. Then she went to put the box with Minako's dress where it would be out of the way. By the time she was done, Mamoru had finished doing up his shirt. "You'd better get over to the shrine before Usagi starts getting antsy." "You know, after what she pulled on us I'm almost tempted to stay here a while, make her sweat a bit." Rei sighed. "Mamoru, let me give you some expert advice. Usagi had me look up practically every astrological calendar in existence to find the perfect wedding day for the both of you. I've practically memorized the work. And I very distinctly remember that today is a very inauspicious day for you." Mamoru seemed to shrink down into himself a little under her stern gaze. "It is?" "Yes. My professional advice is simply this: don't press your luck. Finish your business here as quickly as possible, then go home. Stay there for the rest of the day. That's all." Mamoru smiled nervously. "Right. Would it be pressing our luck to stop by for tea before we go?" "If Usagi insists, go with the flow." "Okay. See you later. And thanks again." "No problem." When Mamoru had left, Rei marched straight over to the mirror, took the rose out of her hair and let it back down again. The way the last little while had been going, she was beginning to feel that putting it up in Usagi's unique style had somehow altered the fundamental balance in the universe. Only when she had set it right again did she go find something that she could put her rose in water with. After hesitating at her bedroom door for a moment, Rei walked over to the dining room and put the little vase in the middle of the long table. She looked down at her rose, smiling. *Not my little secret any more.* ***** Shoji looked at the group of Ancients sitting around the Seed Crystal, all with eyes closed and heads bowed. His lip curled into a sneer. *Groovin' with the Crystal. Why do I suddenly feel like putting flowers in my hair?* Yui was among them, she had been there for almost an hour. They were trying something new, setting up a group telepathic link as they all strove to clarify each others' view of the vision. Yui was suddenly becoming more popular in the family, even among the snot-noses in the Matriarch's household. It looked like they would be here a while, so Shoji decided to leave them to it. This mystical group hug thing just wasn't for him. Shoji walked onto the teleportation stone and 'ported to the garden. Even on a sunny day the garden was well shaded, but after the gloom of the caves he had to squint while his eyes adjusted. The Matriarch was seated where he had seen her on the way out, contemplating her bonsai tree. Once again, she did not acknowledge his presence in any way. Which was fine with him. It seemed that in the past few days she had been even more grim and reticent than normal. Shoji liked to think she was pissed off by Yui stealing her thunder. When he and Yui had come back from their trip they had been delivered a terribly polite letter inviting them to the house here, handwritten by grandma Himiko herself. Since she and Shoji had graciously accepted, they had been placed in the nicest guest room in the house and Yui had been the centre of attention at each family meal. Everyone wanted to know what it was like taking the life force out of a holy place, or what was her interpretation of the Seed Crystal's vision. A little bewildered at first, she seemed to be basking in the attention now. Everybody seemed to be thinking of this as her pet project now. He was happy to see her having such a good time, it really was taking the edge off the anxiety she felt over going back to Tokyo. Problem was, at times like this he didn't have much to do. This place was about as much fun as a museum. He walked into the house, contemplating whether he should go soak in the nearby hot springs, or go toss some fireballs around where Himiko's people would practice. As he walked down the dark hallway, he became aware of a familiar presence. When he rounded a corner, it was no surprise who he found standing there. "Hi Mom. When did you get here?" "Just a few minutes ago," Kaori said. "Is Yui still in the cave?" "Yeah, I just finished checking up on her. I've got to watch these people, if they had their way she'd be in there day and night until she dropped." "The Matriarch is very strict about people contemplating the Crystal being sufficiently rested and prepared." "Well, she's not saying much these days." Kaori did not react to the implied criticism. "Can we go sit for a while?" "Sure, let's go to my room." They climbed to the second story and Shoji ushered her into the rooms that he and Yui were sharing. With all the rice paper panels open to admit the air and the afternoon sun into the spacious rooms, it felt a little less like living in a museum. Shoji plopped himself down cross-legged on one of the cushions. His mother sat across the table from him, kneeling and folding her hands over her light blue kimono. "Yesterday I was told that Yui and the others had been trying to clarify the vision by a group effort," she said. "That's what they're doing now. I talked to Yui after their first try. She doesn't think it's going anywhere, but they'll give it another go." "I see. It's unlike her to be that patient. I wonder if she is being agreeable because this delays your return to Tokyo." Shoji kept his tone casual. "No, we've talked about it. She's okay about going after more places. It's almost getting fun for her now." "Shoji, that is not something that anybody should get any joy out of doing," his mother said, the hint of sharpness in her voice only detectable by Shoji's long experience. "I don't mean it that way, Mom. I just mean it's getting easier for her, that's all." "So you've encountered no problems?" "Only with places outside of Tokyo area, that idea turned out to be a bust." "I meant other sorts of problems." Shoji met her gaze firmly, slipping easily into their old game of mental jujitsu. "No, there hasn't been any problems worth mentioning. We're always long gone before anybody can see us." "The authorities are becoming greatly concerned over your activities. They would give a great deal to capture those responsible and hold them accountable." "We won't give them the chance." "Be that as it may, I would feel better if you took an additional precaution." Shoji frowned. "What precaution?" Kaori reached into the front of her kimono and drew out a small white cloth bundle. She put it on the table between them and unwrapped it. She laid the cloth out around its contents, and withdrew her hands. Shoji leaned forward to get a look. It was a little obsidian statue, rough and very stylized, about ten centimetres high. "It looks ... old." "We have no idea how old." "It's got quite the aura." Now that it was no longer hugged against Kaori's breast, Shoji could easily see that it had its own aura, almost like a living thing. He was nowhere near as aura sensitive as his mother or as Yui, so it must be very powerful. "Shoji, I would like you to raise its temperature by five degrees celsius." Shoji blinked. Suddenly, his mother was talking to him like she had when he was five years old. That's about when she had started him doing this sort of practice. This was the most elementary of exercises for him, he could do it blindfolded by the time he was six. He got the impression there was no point asking what this was about until after he had complied. "Okay." He glanced back down at the statue, directed his will towards it. Shoji let out a grunt of surprise. He resisted the urge to put out his hands to steady himself. The vertigo passed in just a second. To his inner eye, it had seemed like the room had suddenly gone reeling. "That was ... weird." Kaori pointed at one of the teacups in the tea set on the table. "Feel that cup." Shoji did. It was warm. "Did I do that?" "Yes. The statue misdirected your psionic probe. It acts like a sort of refractor of psychic activity." She picked up the statue, held it between them. "Try to see my aura." Carefully this time, Shoji reached out again with his inner sight. He found the feeling of vertigo was not too bad, now he was expecting it. But his mother's aura, usually so familiar, looked all wrong. It was distorted, and somehow it seemed to be all over the place. If he closed his eyes, he probably would have no clue where she was. Kaori placed the statue back on the table. "I think you should take this with you, whenever you and Yui go out to take the life force from another holy place, as you no doubt will soon be doing. This will help to mask your activity." Hesitantly, Shoji picked up the statue. "I don't get it. This isn't going to help Yui contain the light and noise of taking the life force, is it?" "No. But it will help mask you from psychic sensitives." "What good will that do?" Kaori's expression had those familiar hints of impatience and sadness, the very face she wore when she knew he wasn't telling her the whole truth. "It has come to my attention that there are a group of Sensitives in 3- chome Shinjuku. Your activities have apparently attracted their attention. I think that attention would best be avoided. Whenever Yui is taking another Soul Icon, this artifact would be best utilized if you place it approximately between her and 3-chome Shinjuku. I might suggest you study a map before venturing out." *She's serious about this.* "So who are these people? Black sheep?" "Just friends of a friend." Shoji blinked. Was that all? "I would feel better if you assured me you will do as I have asked." Her tone was almost cold now. "Okay. I'll do it. Is there anything else I should know about these people?" "No. If you'll excuse me, I need to get back to the house. Men will be delivering material for our garden later today, they like me to be on hand when outsiders are let onto the premises." She rose gracefully to her feet. "Give my regards to Yui-chan." "I will. See you later." Shoji just sat and watched her leave. She definitely knew more than she was letting on. These sensitives she was talking about, were they the alien weirdos they had run into? How in Hell could she know about them? This didn't make any damned sense. He picked up the little statue again. It really was an evil looking thing, he thought. He wondered if he should tell Yui about this. No, probably not. He'd do as his mother asked. If Yui noticed the statue and asked about it, he'd say Kaori just gave it to him as a good luck charm. Now he really felt like working off some stress. He pocketed the little statue, got up and headed down to the main floor. When he walked into the front foyer, he found Kaori's younger sister there, tying her son's shoelaces for him. She looked up at his approach and smiled. "Hello, Shoji." "Hi Aunt Megumi. You're all dressed up, are you going out on the town?" She blushed slightly at his teasing. "A friend from Tokyo is meeting me in Sapporo for dinner," she said in her soft, tiny voice. "I'm taking Akira there early so that we can take a walk through the park first." They had family in Sapporo, one of the big cities in Hokkaido, so she would no doubt be 'porting them there. That was about as far out as Aunt Megumi and her son ventured these days. "That's great." Shoji stepped over to them and went down on his haunches, bringing him level with the young boy. "You really like Sapporo, don't you, Akira?" The little boy just smiled shyly and nodded. Looked like he wasn't very talkative today. Too bad, he was actually a nice kid when he wasn't in his depressive phase. He wasn't too messed up, considering what he had gone through. Shoji stood up again. "Aunt Megumi, can I ask you a quick question?" "Of course." "Do you know any family or friends of the family living in 3-chome Shinjuku?" Megumi thought about that for a moment. "No, I'm quite sure there aren't any." Which probably meant there weren't. Megumi knew the family very well, other than these occasional outings they were about her only contact. "Oh well, thanks anyway." "Why do you ask?" "Oh, I have some business there next week, I was just wondering if there was anybody I could visit while I was in the area. Anyway, have fun." He went out and spent a little while blasting a cliff face with fireballs. It was still bothering him, that Kaori seemed to know about these aliens. Somehow he no longer felt like it was his own game he was playing. End Chapter 6 Subject: [Fanfic - SM - Secrets 7] Date: Mon, 05 Jan 1998 19:49:14 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- Secrets Chapter 7 - Best Laid Plans Sailor Venus ran at top speed down the narrow residential street. It was three in the morning, the streets were deserted. Still, she had to watch her front very carefully. If she slammed into somebody at this speed, it would probably kill them. She broke out onto a major thoroughfare. Great, now she had to go uphill. Reluctantly, she slowed her pace a bit. Her muscles ached, pushed past the limit of what even a Sailor Senshi should be doing. If she pushed too hard, her legs might give out altogether. She spotted the great wooden archway that served as the entrance to a shrine. *This must be the place.* This one had no wall, so she ran straight up to the shrine building. She stood there, panting, scanning the area. "Nothing," Artemis said. He didn't even bother jumping down from her shoulder. No point getting out of her way, there was nothing happening here. Venus flipped up the face of her wrist communicator. She wheezed out words between great gulps of air. "Venus here ... no contact ... need directions." "Continue west," came Mercury's voice. She sounded like she was running. "Same street ... one kilometre ... shrine ... on your left." "Got it." They were still doing their sweeps. That meant nobody had pinpointed them yet. She ran back to the street and continued running west. Mercifully, she crested the hill and was going down the rest of the way. After just a few seconds, her communicator made a distinctive set of beeps. Venus rasped out a curse as she ran. She knew what that signal meant. There was a big long black iron fence to her left, that must be it. She leaped the fence, landed between two trees and ran out into the open space within the grounds. The dust was just about settled over the rubble. She must have missed them by seconds. "Damn it all to hell!" she wheezed. "Venus," Artemis said. "There are two people down." Venus saw them. Two women in shrine maiden robes, lying on the ground just in front of the ruins. "Oh Gods ..." She ran over to them. As she slowed, Artemis leaped to the ground. Venus knelt down next to one of them, and Artemis jumped over to the other. Venus felt the young woman's throat. There was a steady pulse. She brought her face down next to that of the comatose woman. It was hard to tell, what with Venus still panting from her running. But yes, the girl was breathing. Venus glanced over to Artemis, and got a nod from him. Alive and stable. She flipped up her communicator again. "Venus here. We missed them. Found two people unconscious. No emergency, but we should check them out." "We're on our way," came Mercury's voice. Venus closed her communicator and went to examining the two women more closely, looking for blood and feeling for any major broken bones. Nothing. Probably that guy with the creepy eyes got them from behind with some ESPer thing. "They must have been waiting in the shrine," Artemis said. "Yeah, just like that last one." At a previous site they had found three monks lying in front of a shattered temple building, just like this. There had been no sign of a physical attack, and supposedly they had woken a few hours after the Senshi left them there for the emergency workers to find, none the worse for wear. Like these two, they had defied standing orders to keep out of the temple buildings after dark. They had tried doing just what the police told them not to do: defend their holy places. "I hope they'll be okay," Artemis said, sitting down next to one of them. "Looks like these ones put up more of a fight," Venus said, walking over to a spot a little further from the ruins. There were two wards lying on the ground, the ink which inscribed the characters on the little pieces of paper grey and faded. Much like Rei's wards looked after she had used them. The gravel near them had been scattered about as if blown by an explosion. But there was a semicircle within whose arc the gravel was undisturbed. Except for some footprints that went from nowhere to nowhere. So the ESPers had taken a hit, but blew it off with some sort of barrier. Hopefully, it had at least hurt. Mercury and Mars came running around one side of the ruins, no doubt having leapt the back wall. They were both panting as badly as Venus had been. Whenever they found the site of an attack, they always converged on it as rapidly as possible, to back up whoever found it first in case the ESPers left a trap for them. So far, there had been nothing. The closest they'd come was Jupiter catching a glimpse of the four ESPers teleporting away one time. Without a word, the two of them went straight over to where the two unconscious women lay. Mercury flipped open her computer and started scanning. The translucent blue visor over her eyes, which in the dark more or less matched the blue of her collar and skirt, was already in place. Mars knelt by the other one, put a hand over her forehead. After a moment, the two Senshi looked up from their worked, gave each other a quick nod and switched places. Venus walked over and waited for them to finish. "They'll be fine," Mercury announced. "They suffered quite a shock, but in a few hours they should wake up with nothing worse than some aches and pains." "Their spirits are very troubled," Mars said, standing up from her examination of the second shrine maiden. "Whatever happened to them must have ... hurt." "Well, they got at least one good shot in," Venus said, gesturing over at the spent wards. It was small consolation, but she thought it might let Mars feel just a little better. The mirthless smile on Mars' lips confirmed that it was just cold comfort. "That isn't the half of it. There were wards all over this place, powerful ones. I could feel them as we came over the fence and through the trees. I saw shreds of many more in the ruins." "Maybe that's why it took the ESPers longer," Mercury suggested. "From the time Jeneth first detected them to the time she lost them was over fifteen minutes." "It still wasn't enough," Mars said bitterly. "So you didn't see them?" Mercury asked Venus. "No, I got here just on time to see the dust settle." She was feeling her frustration all the more. These shrine maidens had done everything they could to hold the ESPers off, and still the Senshi had just missed them. Venus heard footfalls behind her, and turned to see Sailor Moon and Jupiter running towards them. The last of their two-element teams, counting the recently conscripted Artemis. Venus flipped up her communicator. "We're all here now." "Understood," came Jeneth's voice. Sailor Moon had insisted at the beginning that the refugees, as they were all beginning to call them, would not be called to a site unless to aid a Senshi or a bystander in immediate danger, or until all the Senshi were there. Sailor Moon walked over to where the two shrine maidens lay. She had a stricken look on her face. Mercury and Mars had to give her repeated assurance that they would be okay. "Do you know these two?" Jupiter asked Mars. "I've met the one with short hair once or twice. I think her name is Nagisa. She's supposed to be quite a gifted oracle, but I had no idea she had it in her to try something like this," she said gesturing over at where the ESPers had apparently set down. "I don't know the other, I've almost never been to shrines in this area." They were in Adachi-ku, in the extreme norther part of metropolitan Tokyo. This new round of attacks had been even more spread out than earlier ones. The Senshi had taken to gathering at the shrine and teleporting to the area as soon as Jeneth notified them. The idea had been that they could pinpoint the exact location as Jeneth was brought in closer. Unfortunately, that wasn't the way it was turning out. The refugees shimmered into existence a short distance away. As Sailor Moon approached them, they all took a step forward and bowed. Venus knew how awkward that made Sailor Moon feel. The two of them had been wondering if they could find a way of getting them out of that habit. Short of saying something directly, which would be rude. "We just missed them," Sailor Moon informed them. "I'm so sorry," Jeneth said, sounding truly mortified. "Don't worry," Sailor Moon said gently. "With your help, we'll catch them yet." "That's right," Venus agreed, coming up beside Sailor Moon. "Their luck has to run out some time." "They may be lucky," Thetan said, "But they are also becoming clever. Once again, they have us moving all over the city, and at all different times of the night." "And I still have no idea how they're eluding aura vision," K'Theelm added. "Maybe I'm defeating myself somehow," Jeneth said, still looking miserable. "Only if you believe so," Thetan said gently. "Thetan has confirmed what you told us," K'Theelm reminded her. "They've started doing something to confound aura vision, and it gets worse as we approach closer to them. That's why you've only been able to detect their general vicinity." Jeneth shook her head. "Whatever the case, I am failing everyone." "No, you're not." Sailor Moon stepped up to her and gave her a tight hug. That really seemed to take her by surprise. Her haunted expression had vanished. Sailor Moon stepped back, held her at arms' length. "We wouldn't even have a chance of catching them without you. We still need you." "I will do my best," Jeneth said, smiling weakly. "Your pardon, but I would like to see what I can do for those poor young women." Sailor Moon accompanied her over to where the two shrine maidens lay. In the meantime, Mercury had walked over. She took the opportunity to get K'Theelm's attention. They moved aside and started talking technobabble. Venus knew they had been thinking about other means to detect these attacks, but from what she heard they had no luck so far. "I'm really glad we ran into each other," Venus said, smiling up at Thetan. "Sailor Moon is right, we'd be lost on this one without you." "I've just been coming along for the ride," Thetan said good naturedly. "I confess I'm beginning to feel ... how do you put it ... like a fifth wheel." "Your time will come," Venus said, winking. "Once we do catch up with them, it's open season on ESPers. And I for one plan on making them damned sorry for all this running around they've made me do." Thetan's face was split with a wide grin. "And I for one plan on making that invisible thief regret his shameful sneak attack on my good friend." "Well, just leave a piece of him for me, okay?" "I will do my best to pass him to you in a conscious state." "When we're done with these ESPers, I hope you'll have time to tell me some more of your stories." In the past couple of weeks, Venus had found time on a couple of occasions to pay a social call to their new allies at their home. Over exquisite dinners she had talked mostly with the big warrior, swapping war stories. She had enjoyed it immensely. "As always, it would be an honour and a pleasure," Thetan said. "As it would be to hear more of your baptism of fire in Great Britain." "Oh great, you want to hear about when I was even more young and stupid." Thetan had been astonished to learn that she had woken to her role as a Sailor Senshi when she was barely thirteen. And had been thrown straight into combat, learning as she went. A far cry from his own experience, where his first battle had been preceded by years of training. Jeneth and Sailor Moon returned to them. K'Theelm and Mercury also came to join them. "It is as they said," Jeneth told them. "The shrine maidens will awaken tomorrow with no ill effects. Hopefully I was able to give them a more restful sleep." "We've done all we can," Sailor Moon said. "We should be going." They all said their goodbyes, and the three refugees vanished behind K'Theelm's shield. The Senshi made their way out the back and walked slowly down deserted narrow residential streets, wanting to get some distance from the place that would likely be the site of intense activity very soon. "I think we're getting better at this," Venus commented as they walked. "Between us, we must have covered half the temples in this district in about five minutes." "You're right, it is going a lot smoother now," Sailor Moon said. She was in her Eternal Sailor Moon form, with the great feathery wings at her back. She smiled warmly. "Good job, everyone. We'll get them yet." "We'd have a better chance if we did our sweeps individually," Mars said. "We talked about that," Sailor Moon said firmly. "One of us against the four of them is just too risky." It had taken a lot of persuasion to get her even let Venus form a third group with only Artemis to help her. But he had already proven that a set of feline eyes and ears gave them an edge. "The problem is, we're shorthanded," Jupiter said. Sailor Moon sighed. "It can't be helped." Venus could hear the pain in her friend's voice. Shortly after Haruka and Michiru had arrived in town, Setsuna had invited Usagi over to their house. From Usagi's account, they had spent a long time trying to persuade her that these ESPers did not merit her attention, that she was risking herself for nothing. It had been very upsetting for her, but Usagi had held firm. Hotaru had kept the situation from becoming awkward by suggesting that they just agree to disagree, and further suggesting that the four of them show off the bridesmaids' dresses they had picked for Usagi's wedding. Minako hadn't said anything, but the whole thing sounded just a little too much like a good cop, bad cop routine. "I'll call Setsuna in the morning," Mercury said. "I guess she'll ask the usual questions about how things went, give me the usual lecture." "Is she still giving you a rough time?" Jupiter asked, sounding angry. "She only talks about it when I call after the Senshi go out," Mercury said. Setsuna had requested they keep her informed of their activities. Ami had volunteered, probably because among all of them she was closest to Setsuna. "I had lunch with her yesterday and she never even mentioned it. You know, it's really different from other times we've had disagreements with the Outer Senshi." "Yeah, this time they're not avoiding us," Venus said. "Hotaru showed up at my last concert, and I invited her backstage afterwards. From the way she acted, you'd think there was nothing going on." "Same with Haruka and Michiru," Jupiter said. "They just showed up at the restaurant last week and acted like nothing's wrong." "Well they are our friends," Sailor Moon said. "Even if we disagree about something, that shouldn't change." "Or maybe they're all just good actors," Venus said. "Sure wouldn't play poker with those four," Mars muttered. The rest of them had a good laugh. Even Mars smiled. "To be fair, I think they're really trying to make sure there are no hard feelings," Jupiter said. "Especially just before the wedding," Sailor Moon sighed heavily. "I've been wondering-" Venus grabbed Sailor Moon by the shoulder, whipped her around and held her tightly at arms' length. "Don't you even *think* about it! You are getting married next week and then you are going to Hawaii for your honeymoon. Period." They all watched Sailor Moon in silence. Her shocked expression slowly faded. "Venus, if we-" "If we haven't caught up with the ESPers by that time, then we just leave them alone for a week." She winked. "Just enough for them to get cocky and us to come back with a vengeance." "Minako ..." Sailor Moon ran into her and crushed her in a tight embrace. "Thanks. You're the greatest." "Don't mention it." They found a little park a short distance further, a reasonably hidden place for them to teleport back to Hikawa Shrine from. They had long since gotten good enough at this to do it without tearing up the ground, so Rei didn't have to fuss over the shrine's maintenance bills anymore. ***** Setsuna rounded the corner and walked down what she thought was the right street. This particular place was harder to find than the earlier ones had been, it was a good deal more obscure. It being nearly midnight, there was nobody around to ask directions from. But it couldn't be helped, this was the proper time for what she needed to do. The sharp footfalls of her high heels were the only sound to break the silence of the cool, windless night. She approached what looked to be the right place. The name on the brass plate beside the gate confirmed it. The police tape had been removed, but the gate was well secured with chains and locks. A discrete sign announced that the small temple was closed for renovations. Which was a nice way of saying that the rubble had been cleared and the place locked up. Setsuna stood before the gate, bowed her head, and joined her hands in the sign of prayer most common in the time of the Silver Millennium, left fist held within right hand at her breast. In a very low voice, she murmured a prayer to the dead which had not been heard on this world for thousands of years. As Mars had pointed out, these places had souls no less precious than those of living persons, deserving of no less respect. In just a slightly louder voice, in the same ancient language, Setsuna ended the prayer with a more personal appeal. "Please forgive." Having finished what she had come to do, Setsuna stood where she was just a moment longer. The ritual brought no comfort, nor any sense of having done proper penance, only a feeling of duty fulfilled. Her plea had been no less sincere for all that. It was no weakness, feeling grief for the sacrifices that had to be made. But the one whose forgiveness she would one day need to ask had no use for sacrifices. Even her seemingly infinite compassion might not let her forgive such treachery. Of all the possible consequences of what she was doing, none frightened her more than the thought that the love of their Princess might no longer extend to her. Setsuna turned and walked back to where she had parked her car. Somehow, it had not seemed proper, driving right up to this holy place in one of those noisy, smelly beasts. "Good evening, Ferine." Setsuna's whole body seized up. She could not have moved even if she wanted to, so great was her shock. That was a name and a voice she had not heard in millennia. She finished turning towards where the voice had come from, managing not to stagger. A man walked out of the shadow where he had been standing. He stood before her and smiled warmly, his hands held casually in the pockets of his light coat. He was a tall, slim man with light skin and wavy brown hair that went almost to his shoulders. He had an ageless face that it was hard to imagine displaying any emotion much beyond the amiable calm with which he regarded her. "I thought somebody might appear tonight," he said in a soft, clear voice. "Exactly one lunar month since this shrine had its soul ripped out, since it had in effect passed from this world. The traditional time of mourning for the Moon Kingdom. I never dreamed it would be you who would come." "Cyrus?" Setsuna whispered, trying to control her shaking. The man nodded. He took a couple of steps closer. "It's good to see you again, Ferine. It's been a very long time." "Cyrus ... how?" "After you and I went our separate ways, Queen Serenity took some interest in my work. She wanted to have me around for a while, so she worked her magic on me. I had never known she had the power to do such a thing. Understandable that she would keep it a secret." Involuntarily, Setsuna reached out her hand. Cyrus took her hand, squeezed it gently. It was sinking in now, this really was him. "I thought you surely perished in the Final War," more thinking aloud than asking a question. "I nearly was. I thought the same of you," he said, still holding her hand, watching her with that calm, placid smile. "When I saw you walk by here ... it was all I could do to stop from crying out. By the time you came back this way, I had just barely gotten over the shock. I'm sorry, I must have given you such a fright." Setsuna shook her head in wonder. "But ... why are you here?" Cyrus chuckled. "You can thank one of my students for that, a little girl who told me the Senshi Venus had been spotted running to the scene of one of these terrible acts of sacrilege. The rest was just a hunch." Setsuna smiled, her shock being washed away by the return of long forgotten memories. "You're a teacher again." "Some things never change. The relationship between sensei and student, however close, is a temporary one. It is a role well suited to somebody who cannot remain long in any one place." Setsuna knew what he was talking about. Somebody who never aged visibly could not hold on to any identity for much more than a decade before moving on. "My God, Cyrus, the length of time you've lived, it's mind-numbing." Cyrus looked puzzled for a moment. Then realization came, and his smile returned. "Oh, of course. You are the Guardian, you can travel outside of time." Setsuna saw and heard the hints of sadness, of regret. Her mind was suddenly cast back to the time of their parting, to the thing that had sent them on different paths. ***** The Moon Kingdom, the time of the Silver Millennium She found him standing on the balcony, leaning on the massive stone railing, still waiting for her. His back was to her, he was looking out over the palace grounds. He never seemed to tire of the sight, not in all the years since he arrived here from Earth. It was daytime, or what might be called daytime. Here, the sun was as irrelevant to the cycles of their lives as was the great globe of the Earth that always hung in that same spot above them. Its rays baked the dust and rocks on the horizon, but the invisible shields that protected this area threw back most of the Sun's merciless glare, reduced it so that it seemed little more than a brilliant golden moon. She could imagine Cyrus standing here pondering the mysteries of the Moon Kingdom as he waited, looking with his eyes that were at once child like and wise. He had made the most of Serenity's generosity. Hardly a boy when presented to the Queen by his teachers from Earth, he had devoured every bit of learning thrown his way, right from the day he was accepted into the court. His insatiable curiosity and unfailing devotion to the truth had earned him respect never before afforded an outsider, had won him a position as one of the Queen's trusted advisors. It was those same qualities that had attracted her to him, had forged a friendship that promised to blossom into something more. But now, for the very first time, she found herself wishing she did not have to speak with him. As she approached he turned. Their eyes met, and the beginning of a smile formed on his lips. It faded just as quickly. They had known each other long enough to be well attuned to each other's state of mind. However stoic her bearing, he of all people would be able to see the anxiety she hid. He walked over to her, and they clasped hands. "Ferine, I was beginning to worry. You'd been locked up with the Guardian for hours. Are you okay?" "Yes, Cyrus. I'm fine." "What in Heaven's name did she want with you?" "She wants me to succeed her." His eyes went wide. "Ferine ..." "Cyrus, that is no longer my name. I am the younger Pluto." He released her hands and stepped back. He must have seen it in her face, must have seen that it was true. "You've accepted?" "Cyrus, it was not a matter of accepting. I am the one, that is all." Cyrus shook his head. "It doesn't make any sense. You've been one of their harshest critics, do you really mean to tell me they intend to share their secrets with you?" "They already have. I now know what the Guardians of Time do, and why. It is what I will also do, when my time comes." Cyrus' expression darkened. "You have taken their oath of secrecy." She hesitated for just a moment. "Yes, I have." His reaction was exactly what she would expect. Anger, confusion, hurt. "You mean to manipulate history in secret, just as they do?" A few short hours ago, she could imagine only one possible answer to that. *Never.* Never to follow the path of those who dared set themselves up as gods. But now, everything was different. "Cyrus, what the Guardians do is necessary. And the secrecy is necessary." She could see his anger simmering down to a cold intensity, the same intensity with which he confronted all those who would murder the truth. "Tell me why." She wanted to, wanted it more than anything she had ever wanted. But she knew what the truth had done to her, what it would do to him. She would protect him from that, no matter what. She shook her head. "I can't." "You mean you won't." His bitterness stung like a blade. "Cyrus ... I'm sorry." Cyrus nodded slowly, his expression dark and cold. "I'm sorry too." It hurt even more than what she had feared. The only thing that kept her from breaking down was the enormity of the burden that had been placed on her. Held up to the truths she had woken to, her pain seemed a mere trifle. Yet she longed to make amends. "Cyrus, I have no right to ask, but can you trust me when I tell you there are good reasons for what I must do?" He shook his head. "If you cannot tell me the reasons, then they cannot be good. If you cannot trust me with the knowledge, then I cannot trust you to use it well." They were her own words, ones she had both written and spoken many times over many years. His voice held no more bitterness, but it held judgement. He accused her with her own voice ... no, with the voice of Ferine, she thought sadly. The woman whose passion for the truth made her the perfect candidate for preserving the greatest lie of all, the perfect candidate for becoming Sailor Pluto. She looked down, no longer able to meet his accusing eyes. "There will be an announcement tomorrow. I will be leaving the day after." "I see." She looked up again. "It will be years before I take the Guardian's post, I will be visiting the Moon Kingdom frequently." "I would expect so." She could hear it in his voice. He didn't care. As far as he was concerned, Ferine was already dead. The woman he faced was a stranger. "The Guardian told me that Serenity was waiting for me," she said. "Then you'd better go." Again, only the enormity of what she had been told, what she had been shown, allowed her to ignore her pain. "Goodbye, Cyrus." "Goodbye, Pluto." In the years between then and her assuming the Guardianship, she visited the Moon Kingdom many times. Somehow, Cyrus always arranged to be elsewhere at those times. She never met him again. ***** Tokyo, 1998 She drove him to his apartment. They sat down and talked until morning. Pluto had spent most of the centuries after the Final War in her ethereal realm outside of time, in the misty little world beyond the Gate of Time where past, present and future were one. She had seen little of the utter devastation the war had wrought on the world. But Cyrus had seen it all. Fortunate enough to have been far from the great cities of the Golden Kingdom on Earth, he and a pitiful few had escaped the holocaust brought about by Beryl's demon hordes, and Serenity's attempt to contain them. He had spent centuries wandering the Earth with one group of refugees, then another, then another. Eventually he had despaired of finding any signs of the world he had known. Were it not for the evidence of his own immortal body, the evidence that magic had been done to him, he might think that those great kingdoms had never existed. That they had all been a dream. It took all night for him to recount even the barest outline of what had transpired since then. He had taken on literally hundreds of identities, many of which he remembered only as a name, a time and a place. A few of the names she even recognized as obscure historical figures. Of her own activities she could say little. He seemed to accept that. "It is astonishing we never met before this," he said, still holding her hand, as he had been for a while. "For all your time travel, you spent centuries wandering the Earth, just as I did." "I didn't spend even one tenth of those centuries in the timestream," Setsuna said. "Next to you, I am barely a stripling." He chuckled. "Well, I guess we both had our reasons for keeping a low profile. It wasn't very likely we would just stumble upon each other by accident." "If the dates and places you've given me are accurate, this isn't the first time we've lived in the same city at the same time." "Well, this time wasn't an accident." She nodded in understanding. "The Sailor Senshi." "Right. When I first heard of them, I thought it must be some joke of the Gods. I had hardly even thought about the Silver Millennium for centuries. Yet it seemed that its guardians had suddenly reappeared in Tokyo." "You truly hoped to find us here?" "Setsuna, to tell you the truth, I didn't know what to think." They had taken to calling each other by the names of their current identities. They both understood the importance of maintaining a false character, the discipline it imposed. "But you did move into the city." "Yes. I'd been here many times in the past, so I knew my way about. I could continue my work, while wondering if the stories I was hearing were true." He looked intently at her. "Setsuna, can you tell me, are the others really the Sailor Senshi brought back to life?" "That's not a simple question, Daniel. I'm not sure I know the complete answer myself. I'm sure each of them shares some part of the Senshi we knew in the Silver Millennium, not just the power but the soul. I knew all of them, and I recognize much of the Senshi I knew then in the ones I have come to know in this age. Only Princess Serenity retains much memory of her past life, though." Daniel gasped. "Princess Serenity ... ?" Setsuna smiled. "Now she is better known as Sailor Moon." Daniel slapped his forehead and uttered an oath Setsuna had not heard since before she became the Guardian. "How could I have missed it?" "Don't feel badly. As far as I can gather, Queen Serenity placed a very powerful confounding spell on all of them. Unless you knew them to be the same person, it would be almost impossible for you to associate the Princess with Sailor Moon, or with her current identity." Daniel smiled wistfully. "The Princess was such a joy to behold, such a treasure. Is she changed much now?" "At the core, she is the same. They all are. But they are also products of this age, and of the families they were born into. They have been guided by their ancient souls, but they have also been shaped by the blood of their new families, and the world they were born into." "I had always been told that were the Senshi to all perish, they would be reborn when the world needed them most." Setsuna nodded. "Not just the world, but the galaxy. They were reborn to end the Sailor Wars, once and for all." Daniel's expression became grim. "That was something Serenity only ever hinted at, even after taking me into her confidence. So it was true. Her battle with Beryl was only one part of a larger war." "Yes. The approaching forces of chaos triggered the resurrection of Beryl in this age, among other events. The final conflict came four years ago. Chaos was scattered, with the results we have seen. Chaos can no longer take conscious form, it simply lies in our hearts where we must deal with it as we will." "If that is true, then what enemy do you fight now?" Setsuna sighed. "That is not a simple story." Daniel glanced over at the rice cooker he had turned on some time ago. "Perhaps you can tell me over breakfast." She told him the story in a fair amount of detail, only leaving out anything that might identify the players in her tale. She had told him even before they got here that the identities of the Senshi were a trust she could not betray, even to him. With that exception, she told him everything of importance. He listened with a patience she recognized as being much like her own, one nurtured by the centuries. He never spoke, trusting her to tell him all she thought he should know. When she was done, he thought in silence for a while. "So you mean to resurrect the Silver Millennium here on Earth." "In effect, yes." He shook his head and sighed. "It's quite the tangled web you've woven. The Ancients and the Senshi play cat and mouse in the dark, none of them knowing the whole story. It's subterfuge worthy of Machiavelli himself." "I wish there were another way." "I think there is." Setsuna frowned. "What do you mean?" Daniel leaned forward, fixed her with a cold stare. "Tell the Ancients the truth. Tell them that bringing the Crystal Palace into being would destroy their world. Tell them if they value their lives they must keep the Seed Crystal buried forever." Her eyes narrowed. "Daniel, if I didn't know better I would think you know something about the Seed Crystal that I don't." "I know what you know, which is enough. I know it is almost certainly an artifact from the time of the Silver Millennium. It has to be something created by use of the Old Powers. The same powers that were used to create the Ginzuishou, to build the Moon Kingdom. The same powers that ultimately destroyed the Silver Millennium." Setsuna shook her head. "The Silver Millennium was destroyed by Beryl's demon hordes." "Beryl simply used those same powers in a different way. And Serenity's retaliation did no less damage. Believe me, I saw." Setsuna felt a tinge of anger. "Daniel, you know that's not fair. What happened was not Serenity's fault, she had no other option." "You're right. When faced with an enemy who used the Old Powers, she had no choice but to respond in kind. The result was inevitable." Setsuna shook her head. "No, the result was not inevitable. It could have been prevented, if different choices had been made before Serenity's time. Had the Moon Kingdom been able to exercise closer control over the Earth, Beryl could have been stopped long before her power grew out of control." "Is that your answer, control?" Daniel asked. The sharpness in his voice was only detectable by somebody like Setsuna, who knew him and observed him carefully. "How can you control something you don't understand? Do you have any idea what it is that gives the Senshi their power, that allows them to conjure their weapons out of thin air?" "No," Setsuna answered truthfully. "It could be that nobody knows that." "Then you cannot claim to know the consequences of using those powers once again." "I make no such claim. We have all learned to use the gifts we were given as best we can. What more can we do?" "Now that Chaos is dispersed, the Old Powers are no longer needed. Bury them, once and for all. Bury the Seed Crystal, bury the artifacts that give you your powers, bury it all." Setsuna regarded him in silence for a moment. "Why would you ask me to do such a thing?" Daniel leaned back, regarded her with that slightly distant look that told her he was choosing his words carefully, that he was trying to make her understand something important. "When I was watching this new, modern age develop, I was beginning to think that I was seeing the old kingdoms born again. This age has produced wonders to rival those of the Silver Millennium. For a while I even tried searching out the sources of these new wonders, thinking that some artifact, some piece of knowledge from those lost kingdoms had been uncovered. Eventually it dawned on me, how utterly wrong I was, how utterly different this new age was from the old. The Old Powers had been handed to us in a time that was little but legend even in the time of the Silver Millennium. Whether by design or by accident, the original Senshi were given powers that were passed on to their successors over the ages. They learned to use those powers, and to a limited degree they and the people around them grew to understand the nature of those powers. But there was never any doubt that they were not our own, that they were the product of some minds utterly unfathomable to us. Whether those ancient ones intended these powers as a gift or a curse or simply cast them in our direction as discarded flotsam, the fact is they were never truly ours. We were never more than children, playing with things we did not understand." Daniel leaned forward, folded his hands on the table. "This age is different. This civilization we can truly say we built with our own hands, with the products of our own minds. Wherever we are intended to go from here, we can truly say it is our own destiny. Bring back the Old Powers, and we will lose that. Even should the new Silver Millennium flourish, and not be demolished as the last one was, it will not be truly ours. It will be a hand-me-down." Setsuna sensed that he was done. "Daniel, those very ideas were debated even in the time of the Silver Millennium. Even by you and I." "I know that," he answered. "The difference is that back then we could not conceive of a civilization that was not built on the foundation of those alien powers. Now we know that there can be one. Look around you." Setsuna smiled sadly. "I see a world that is no less capable of one day destroying itself than was the Moon Kingdom. I see that fate coming closer with each passing day." "Much of that is the fault of the most recent clash of the Old Powers. You make my argument for me." "Be that as it may, the point stands," Setsuna said. "This world stands on the brink. Whether in a few hours of atomic fire or generations of decay, its ultimate collapse is becoming more and more likely. There is no denying that. The Old Powers may be the only thing that will let us survive what is to come." "I don't deny that a new dark age may be approaching," Daniel said. "But that gives me no reason to think the Old Powers could save us. For millennia, humanity has survived the worst this world had to throw at it, survived and flourished, without the dubious benefit of that old curse. I think we've proven that we can walk our own path. However thorny it may be, however many missteps we make, we have always managed to persevere. We've earned the chance to make our own future." "Daniel, I've already told you that I've seen the sort of future the Princess can make for us. If she uses the Old Powers to bring Crystal Tokyo into being, what of it? Those powers are a fact of life, they exist whether we like it or not. If we try to bury them, they will reappear again, sooner or later." "If it's later rather than sooner, maybe we'll be ready for them this time," Daniel said. "They were buried for more than ten thousand years. Think of what we may know, what we may be able to do in another ten thousand years. If the Powers emerge again, they may be nothing but quaint anachronisms to the giants we could become." "The Old Powers are different," Setsuna insisted. "You can't engineer a ginzuishou into existence, can't build one in a factory." "No. But somebody did create it. Somebody *made* those artifacts. Someday we could learn how." "Those ancient ones may very well have been endowed with powers we have no hope of ever understanding." Daniel's expression showed disappointment. "If you truly believe that, then you have set them up as gods. I have no way to answer that." "Daniel, I truly know nothing more of the ones to whom I owe my powers. I can only tell you that I have faith those powers can be made into forces of good, if used properly. Ultimately, my faith lies with those who wield the powers. I have faith in our Princess, in her ability to bring about the future I have seen." "Not faith enough to tell her the whole truth, it would seem." That stung worse than Setsuna would have thought. "I do have faith in her, but I must also give mind to her limitations. There are certain things I can deal with that she cannot. This is one of them. Nobody can regret more than I do that it must be this way." Daniel's expression slowly softened, ever so slightly. "I can see that you love her. I truly hope she can find it in herself to forgive you for what you are doing. But I still think that no good can come from keeping her in the dark." Setsuna smiled sadly. "It seems you and I are continuing that conversation so long ago, are still divided by the same argument." "Secrets always divide people." "But you and I know more than anybody that we all live with secrets." Daniel surprised her by smiling cheerfully. "Touche. Living a lie all this time, I hardly even think about it any more. I should not be so quick to judge." His expression sobered. "I truly regret having treated you so harshly. You're right, that ultimately it comes down to faith. I should have had more faith that you were protecting me from something I was better off not knowing." "You're wrong," Setsuna said. Daniel raised an eyebrow, indicating his puzzlement. "It's not faith," she explained. "It's love. I was motivated by love then, just as I am now. Of course, I want to see our world have the best possible future. But ultimately, I want it because that is the world my Princess lives in. And now I know it is the world that you live in. Those are the two best reasons for making that future happen." Daniel smiled warmly. They both reached across the table and clasped hands, sitting like that for a while. When they had last parted so long ago, Setsuna had been just starting to acknowledge her own feelings, love and respect and desire all getting mixed up in her young mind. It had all been so complicated then, and had been shot to pieces before she could explore it any further, had been buried deeply over the centuries. Now rekindled, those feelings seemed so absurdly simple. But it wasn't something she felt compelled to explore right away. The centuries had changed her perception of time, she was content to leave things be for now. Daniel seemed to feel the same way, judging from his contented expression. "I feel almost silly saying this," Daniel said, "but I have an appointment in a couple of hours." "It's been a long night," Setsuna said. "I should be going home before my friends start to worry about me, and while I'm still in shape to drive." They both stood. "Will I see you again soon?" Daniel asked. It was understood that she would have to contact him. Her place of residence would lead to the Senshi, and so had to remain a secret. "Yes, I'll call soon. We've got a lot of catching up to do." "I know you can't say much about what you've been up to," Daniel said, "but you must have done plenty of things besides being the Guardian of Time these past ten thousand years. I'll bet we've had a great many common acquaintances along the way, why don't we try and see how many we can discover?" "I'd like that very much." Setsuna suddenly felt that just bowing and saying goodbye wasn't quite right. She surprised herself by acting on that feeling. She stepped up to Daniel and embraced him tightly. He looked pleasantly surprised. "In fact, how about dinner tonight?" she asked. "Well, if you come around seven that will give me enough time to prepare a dish that was a favourite of the Empress Himiko who held court here in about the second century A.D." "Interesting, I had spent most of that century in the New World around El Dorado, I was nowhere near Japan. Legend places the empress Himiko somewhat later than that." "So El Dorado really existed?" Setsuna smiled. "I can see we'll have a great deal to talk about." "I'm looking forward to it." ***** Shoji stood on the balcony of the rooms he was sharing with Yui in the Matriarch's house. He looked out over the vast, unspoiled forest spread out below him. It seemed to go on forever. He had spent days wandering through it, and had come nowhere near the edge of the domain that was theirs alone. Fear of ancient legends kept the locals out, and various tricks of the Ancients turned back the few tourists who decided to venture in. Shoji had the vast space practically to himself. He could imagine himself a great feudal lord, master of all he surveyed. *Man, this is gettin' old.* Now that they were back from Tokyo with a new batch of Soul Icons in tow, Yui had come up with a new one. Now she was *talking* to the damned crystal. Telepathically, of course. Yui hadn't used her vocal cords since she was a toddler. She had insisted that she needed to do this alone, so all the sensitives had been unceremoniously escorted out of the caves by the Matriarch's heavies. Shoji suspected this was just an excuse to order them about and to further delay their return to Tokyo. The weirdos had nearly caught up with them a couple of times. Kaori's gizmo was doing its job, but clearly it was not perfect. Yui and Akechi were getting nervous again. It was amusing to watch the household running about at Yui's beck and call, but it was all starting to wear thin. Just how many times could he soak in the hot springs or wander through the forest? Put simply, he was feeling very neglected. He heard the ancient floorboards in the hallway creaking. He turned to look. The elaborately painted panel slid open. One of grandma Himiko's young maidservants was kneeling outside the door. They all looked the same to Shoji, with their hair all done up like Geisha and their practically identical kimonos. She placed her fingertips down on the floor and bowed. "I apologize for the intrusion." "No prob," Shoji said, walking back into the room. "What can I do for you?" "The Matriarch would have Shoji-san present himself to her in the tea room." These people all had this annoyingly oblique way of expressing a simple order as if it were a polite request. Presumably she meant now. "Yeah, I guess I can fit her into my busy schedule. Lead the way." The young woman stood, her expression still neutral, never meeting his eyes. Shoji had never been able to get a rise out of any of them, even the one whose ass he had groped. It was sure fun being the guests of honour. They even washed his clothes and had them neatly folded for him each morning. They also kept leaving a formal man's kimono that they no doubt would like him to wear. He kept ignoring it, kept wearing the jeans and T- shirts he had brought with him. The maidservant led him down to the main floor and over to the tea room. She kneeled beside the closed panel and opened it partway. She bowed down to whomever was inside. From where he stood waiting, Shoji could not see in. **Forgive the intrusion. Shoji-san has come as requested.** Shoji wondered why the woman was suddenly using telepathy. **Have him enter,** came the Matriarch's open sending. The maidservant opened the panel the rest of the way, slid aside and bowed to Shoji. He walked in, and suddenly knew why they were using telepathy. Grandma Himiko sat their waiting. To her left were his Aunt Megumi, and her little son Akira. To her right was Yui. They sat in a square that was completed by an unoccupied cushion, no doubt for him. Nobody was smiling. Shoji decided he'd better act accordingly. **Good afternoon, grandma Himiko,** he said, bowing. **Sit down.** Stern, but not angry. They were here to talk serious business, but not here for a dressing down. Shoji took his place. He smiled at little Akira, who smiled back. The little boy was unlikely to be an active part of whatever was going on here, he was no doubt present simply because Aunt Megumi never let him out of her sight. The boy was well-behaved to a fault, unless addressed directly he would probably sit there like a statue. Which was probably just as well, since there was some doubt as to whether he could even hear telepathic signals any more. Shoji spared just a quick glance for Yui. She looked a little nervous, probably just because of the formality. Not frightened or agitated. **Two days ago, your Aunt Megumi travelled to Sapporo to visit the man to whom we owe the return of young Akira to our family.** So that's where they had gone off to. **You mean Takada-san.** Himiko sniffed, her expression becoming rueful. **Whatever his true identity, that is what he chooses to call himself.** Shoji had always wondered what the Matriarch felt about the enigmatic Takada. It looked as if she had mixed feelings, acknowledging their debt to him but not fully trusting him. Everybody in the family had their own opinion on the elusive man, even though Megumi and Akira were the only ones who had ever actually met him. There was no doubt at all he had pulled Akira out of a real mess, maybe prevented him from doing something that would have brought the outsiders hunting them all down without mercy. There were various theories about who exactly he worked for. Aunt Megumi practically worshipped the man, as one would expect. Shoji had always wanted to meet the guy, he sounded interesting. **Yesterday Megumi related to me an outline of their conversation,** Himiko continued. **He was asking questions about the shrines and temples that are being demolished.** That got Shoji's interest. **What sort of questions?** Again, that rueful smirk. **Very oblique questions suggesting that he was making official inquiries into the incidents. And suggesting that we might be able to tell him something about them.** Shoji turned to Megumi. **What did you tell him?** **Nothing.** she replied. She cast her eyes down. **Nothing specific.** **It seems the questions took your Aunt Megumi by surprise,** Himiko said. There was annoyance expressed in her sending, but no rebuke. **More than likely it was obvious to Takada that she did know something more about the incidents. He has probably concluded that somebody in the family is responsible.** Shoji tried to head off what he figured was coming next. **He's probably some sort of government agent helping the police. He knew about us before, so he must have already suspected. I doubt Aunt Megumi did more than confirm that.** **He is more than just a government agent,** Himiko said sharply. **He is a spell caster, maybe even a magi. That means he wields powers not unlike our own. It also means he understands those powers at least as well as we do.** Probably better, Shoji thought. Though he certainly didn't want to say that here. **We're unlikely to run into him, if that's what concerns you,** Shoji said. **He's only one man.** **Only one that we know of,** Himiko said. **Where there is one spell caster, that points to a whole society of them. He no doubt has allies, no telling how many.** The Matriarch turned to fix her gaze on Yui, then back on Shoji. **Until I say otherwise, I don't want you taking the life force from any further holy places. Do you understand?** **Yes, Matriarch,** Yui said quickly. That clinched it. There was no point arguing, at least not now. **Yes, Matriarch,** Shoji said. **You may go.** Himiko's four guests got up and left. Shoji closed the door behind them. As they walked down the hall, they all gradually relaxed from the formality of the meeting. They stopped at the stairs. **Don't feel bad, Aunt Megumi,** Shoji said. **Like I said, this Takada guy probably already suspected us. I think he was just trying to spook you.** **I don't like lying to him,** Megumi said. She didn't sound bitter, just sad. **He's a good man.** She looked earnestly at him. **Shoji, please do as the Matriarch says. It would break your mother's heart if anything happened to you.** **I'll do as she says,** Shoji said, smiling. **I promise.** **Thank you. Please excuse me, I need to prepare Akira's meal.** **Okay, see you both later.** **See you, Aunt Megumi,** Yui said, waving casually. She didn't bother saying anything to Akira, there probably wouldn't be much point. Shoji and Yui went up the stairs. Shoji still kept his anger and frustration reined in. He didn't want Yui to think he was mad at her, which he wasn't. **Did you just get out of the cave?** he asked. **Yes. One of grandma's girls was waiting for me in the garden, she told me that grandma Himiko wanted to see me. Grandma told me the story before she sent for you.** Shoji figured as much. Wanted to get Yui's agreement to this first, knowing she was nervous about going back to Tokyo for more Soul Icons. **Well, I guess we're shut down for the time being.** **Sorry, Senpai.** It looked like she felt bad about agreeing so readily. She probably thought he was disappointed she hadn't stood up to the Matriarch. Shoji stopped them in front of their room, leaned over and kissed the top of her head. **Don't worry about it. I don't think more Soul Icons are going to make much of a difference now anyway. Probably just as well.** That seemed to cheer her up a bit. They went into their rooms. There was no proper furniture, so Shoji had taken to folding up the futons into a rude slouch chair of sorts, which probably annoyed the servants to no end. He reclined on the folded quilts, and Yui came down and snuggled up beside him. **I was really tired from talking to the Crystal, I didn't feel up to arguing.** All part of the Matriarch's planning, Shoji thought. Crafty old cow. **So did the crystal say anything back to you?** She hesitated for a second. Her expression was a mix of excitement and uncertainty. Shoji's interest really perked up. **You came out after a pretty short time,** he observed, that having just occurred to him now. **Was there something new?** She stayed resting against his chest, not rising to meet his gaze. She hesitated for a moment longer before continuing. **I'm not really sure, but when I ask the Crystal what it wants, it's like there's a sort of answer that comes back. It's in a really distant fuzzy voice, like an echo or something.** **A voice?** Shoji asked. **Not really a telepathic voice, more like a memory going right into my head. Like words I heard somebody say in a dream.** **What words?** Again, a moment's hesitation. **It says to seek the ones with the ancient souls.** They sat in silence for a while as Shoji rolled that one around in his head. **Have you told anybody else?** **No. I was kind of excited, I wanted to come see you first. I also wasn't too sure, but now that I've told you I'm a little more confident about it. I'm sure that's what I heard. Do you think we should go tell the others?** **No, I think we should sit on this one for a while.** **Senpai, do you know what it might mean?** **Nothing leaps to mind. But if we take it literally, there may be somebody who can help us find what the Crystal wants.** Yui moved over a bit, looked up at him. **Help us? Who?** Shoji smiled. **I think I'll go pay a visit to some of the black sheep of the family.** Yui's expression darkened. **Why them?** **The ones I'm thinking of can see into people's souls better than any of us. I have no idea what an ancient soul - whatever that means - would look like. But one of them might know.** **I don't like them.** **Oh, they're not so bad,** Shoji said soothingly, squeezing her a bit closer. **They are the way they are because of what they can see.** **It's because of what they can see that I don't like them.** **Well, you don't have to come along. And don't worry, I know enough to stay away from the dangerous ones. They mark their territory clearly enough.** **So you'll just be seeing vagrants?** **Yeah.** **They ... don't talk much.** **They talk well enough, if you prod them the right way.** **So what happens if they find somebody? I mean somebody with an ancient soul or whatever.** Shoji grinned. **Then we'll go hunting different game.** ***** The music swelled and the lights went down, all except for the ones over the dance floor. To yet another round of applause, Mamoru led his bride out into the wide open area that was surrounded by all the tables. Usagi seemed to float along the floor next to him, her white wedding dress barely clearing the ground. Right on cue, she returned his bow with an elegant curtsy. Their hands still joined, they moved in closer, Mamoru slipping his hand around her waist, she resting hers on his shoulder. For just a moment they stood there, utterly still, looking into each other's eyes. Then at just the right moment they swirled around, Usagi's dress and long golden pigtails fanning out behind her. They waltzed round and round, oblivious to everything but themselves and the music that carried them along. Minako blew her nose again. "Thazzo beautiful ..." she whimpered, dabbing at her eyes. "Another tissue?" Ami asked softly, holding out another tissue paper as discretely as she could. Having anticipated this reaction she had two little pouches folded almost invisibly into her long bridesmaid's dress. One for the tissues she kept handing Minako ... the other for the ones she got back. Ami made a point of not venturing too far from her friend, she hoped she had brought enough to last the evening. All eight of the bridesmaids were standing in a row beside the dance floor. No two of their dresses were in any way similar. Rei's was certainly the most flamboyant ... Ami had almost been afraid she would show up in red boots, but was relieved to see that she had settled on red high heels, surprise surprise. She noted that most of the others had done what Ami had, chosen a colour more or less matching their Sailor Senshi skirt. The exception was Pluto, who had quite properly foregone wearing black. Her own dress was of a cut that looked to be from nineteenth century continental Europe. It might very well be an original, Ami would have to ask her sometime. "I see Usagi wasn't the only one to change outfits after the ceremony," Makoto said, glancing past Michiru at the one who stood slightly apart from the others. Haruka smiled. "It's part of the compromise I made with the bride," she said. The dress she wore at the ceremony had been a rather severe thing, buttoned up to the neck and with long sleeves puffed at the shoulders. Now she wore a white tuxedo. "You mean she knew you were going to do this?" Hotaru asked. She sounded like she disapproved. "Yes, this was the product of very long negotiation." "And what did you negotiate away?" Makoto asked. "Dance lessons," Haruka said, gesturing out to the happy couple. It looked like the lessons had paid off, neither of them had missed a beat as they swirled around the dance floor. "I liked your dress," Hotaru said. "I still think you should have kept it on." "I couldn't very well do that," Haruka said. She moved in next to Michiru and they joined hands. "After all, Michiru needs a dance partner for the evening." With that, they moved out onto the dance floor and joined the waltz. They kept in perfect time with Usagi and Mamoru, mirroring their movements exactly, always keeping just on the opposite side of the dance floor. Makoto crossed her arms and glared at them. "Hmph. Those two still think they shine brighter than the sun." "Right ... " Rei began to say. Any further comment was interrupted by the best man approaching her. Yuichirou smiled, offering his arm to the maid of honour. Rei's expression of annoyance melted instantly. She took his arm, and let herself be led out onto the floor. The waltz soon carried them away. Ami noticed that Usagi's parents were now dancing as well. Other couples were getting up from the tables to follow suit. Ami noticed Usagi's little brother Shingo approaching. Not so little anymore, she noted. He would be graduating from high school next year. How time flies. Shingo walked up to Hotaru, smiling nervously. "Would you like to dance, Hotaru-san?" "Yes, I'd love to," she answered brightly. He took her hand, and they joined in the dance. Ami kept her eye on them. They moved as smoothly as any of the adult couples. Better, in fact. "They dance very well together, Shingo and Hotaru," she commented. "I didn't know either of them did ballroom dancing." "Hotaru told me she's been taking lessons in preparation for the wedding," Setsuna said, rubbing her chin meditatively. "I've no idea where, though." She smiled. "Your pardon, but I believe I've been targeted," she said softly. A man who Ami recognized as one of Usagi's uncles came and asked Setsuna to dance, who accepted. In short order, Makoto and Minako were snatched up. The latter still had red, swollen eyes, but at least she wasn't sniffling anymore. At least not for now. She'd be fine, as long as she didn't trip on her dance partner. Ami caught herself trying to guess what the odds were of that happening. "Would you like to dance, Ami?" She hadn't even noticed Ryou coming up beside her, so intent was she on watching the elegant spectacle of all the couples swirling about. Like her, Ryou tended to be very quiet and unobtrusive, almost to a fault. He would never call attention to himself unless there was a reason, would never be loud for the sake of show. Which was why she felt so comfortable with him, whether they were talking or sharing a quiet moment. Which was why they were so perfect together. "I'd love to," Ami said. They stepped forward, and she moved into his arms. "Ryou-kun?" she said, just as they were about to start. "Yes, Ami?" "The answer to your question is 'yes'." His face was a delight to behold, as puzzlement quickly gave way to comprehension, then to unabashed joy. "Ami ... " She winked. "Are we going to dance or not?" For the next little while the world consisted of the two of them and the music, nothing more. Ami had wondered what it would feel like, when she finally gave him her answer. All she knew was, she would be quite content to stay right here for the next thousand years. In between dances, Makoto cornered her in the hallway that led to the powder room. "Okay, out with it." "What?" Makoto crossed her arms, her eyes narrow and probing but her smile friendly. "You and Ryou suddenly both look like that cat that swallowed the canary. What's the big secret?" Ami wondered why she didn't feel embarrassed. Somehow, that just wasn't part of her emotional vocabulary anymore. She just smiled. "I said yes." Makoto's eyes went wide. "Here? Today?" Ami nodded. Makoto's face split in a grin of pure joy. "Oh, Ami-chan ..." she reached out and crushed Ami against her. She had to think quickly, turning so that the side of her head was nestled under Makoto's chin, not wanting to get makeup on her taller friend's breast. "That's such wonderful news," Makoto whispered. Ami squeezed her back. "I owe this to you too. It was your words that helped me make this decision." "Nonsense," Makoto said gently, still holding her close. "I just told you what you already knew." "Yes, you did. But you helped me find the courage to take this step. I can never thank you enough, onesama." Makoto's grip on her loosened. Ami wondered why she was so quiet. Then it dawned on her what she had said. Ami stepped back, and Makoto let her go. Ami stared down at her fidgeting hands, suddenly finding embarrassment was still part of her vocabulary after all. "I'm sorry ... uh, Mako-chan. The fact is, I've sort of thought of you that way for a long time. I know technically I'm older than you ... I guess it's silly mentioning that. Still, I've thought of you as a big sister. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you." "Embarrass?" Ami looked up, surprised by the emotion in Makoto's voice. She had barely been able to speak. She looked like she was trying very hard not to cry. "Ami, I couldn't be more ... honoured." From the way she said it, the word was woefully inadequate. Ami took both of Makoto's hands in her own. They stood like that for a few moments. When it looked like Makoto was no longer fighting back tears, Ami said "Come on, let's go back. This is Usagi's day, we should be with her." The magical night continued. All too quickly, it was time for the newlyweds to say their goodbyes and go change yet again, this time for their ride to the airport. They both looked blissfully happy, but Ami thought she detected some undercurrents of anxiety in Usagi's manner. She had been living with Mamoru for over a year now, it didn't seem to make sense that she would be nervous about their honeymoon. She was probably exhausted, Japanese weddings tended to put the bride through a marathon. When Minako suddenly approached her, Ami could see something was wrong. She wasn't crying anymore, but she didn't look happy. "Ami, can I see you for a second?" "Sure." She turned to Ryou, with whom she had been talking. "I'll be right back." He smiled. "Okay, see you soon." There was just a hint of worry, well hidden but unmistakable. Maybe he had interpreted Minako's manner as meaning this was Sailor Senshi business. Maybe it was. Minako led her across the room, quickly but not so much so that it would attract attention. "Usagi's getting cold feet," she said in a low voice when they were out of earshot. "I think I'll need some backup here." "What do you mean?" Ami asked. Minako looked almost angry, she couldn't imagine what was going on. "I mean she doesn't want to go." "What? You mean on her honeymoon?" Ami tried to keep her voice down, despite her shock. "That's right." They left the banquet hall and entered the hallway that led to the dressing rooms, where Usagi and Mamoru had gone. Minako stopped there, as it finally provided space to speak in private. "Minako, what's going on?" Ami asked. Minako took a deep breath and let it out, as if calming herself. "Some time between dances, Mamoru and Usagi were talking to his old classmate Saori." Ami remembered her. Saori was a detective now, as she recalled. "So?" "So, Saori decides to tell them about this new case she's on, and guess what? She's investigating all these temples that the ESPers are demolishing. So she goes on and on about how terrible the crime is, how difficult it's going to be to catch these people, how Interpol is sticking their nose in and how her bosses are all over her to find answers." "Oh, no ..." Ami was beginning to see what was wrong. Minako nodded. "Yeah, so they have to stand there and nod and say how terrible it is and pretend they don't know a thing. Anyway, it sounds like it's really got Usagi spooked, she seems to think something awful will happen to us while she's away. She wants to call it off. Dammit, we can't let her do that!" "I know," Ami said gently. "We should go talk to her." "It's all that stupid cop's fault!" Minako hissed. "What the hell did she think she was doing, talking about something like that at a wedding? At *Usagi's* wedding! And it's bad luck too, talking about stuff like that right in the wedding hall! Can't cops talk about anything but their work? Don't they have lives or anything?" "Easy, Mina-P," Ami whispered, using her favourite term of endearment from years ago. She reached up and ran her hands along both sides of Minako's neck, and down her bare shoulders. Her touch was something between a caress and a massage, something she had learned from long experience could help relax her. "We'll go talk to Usagi. It'll be okay, you'll see." "This day was supposed to be so perfect!" Minako said. The edge was coming off her anger, but she was still upset. "Why did this have to happen?" "It's nobody's fault," Ami said, still kneading Minako's shoulders. She could feel some of the tension being worked out. "Saori couldn't have known how it would upset Usagi. I'm sure she'd be very sorry if she knew she'd upset Mamoru's wife." Minako's expression suddenly became less troubled. The corners of her mouth came up just a bit. "Mamoru's wife ... you said that like it was the most normal thing in the world. It really hasn't had time to sink in for me. Our Prince and Princess, they're married." "Yes, they are," Ami said softly, now just holding Minako's shoulders, running her thumbs along her collarbones. "They're our King and Queen now." She smiled. "But I don't think they'll mind us calling them Prince and Princess. At least not until they're in the Crystal Palace." Minako finally showed the smile Ami had been trying to coax out of her. "Just like you to be thinking that far ahead." "Should we go ahead now?" Minako's expression sobered. She was not upset now, just concerned, thoughtful. "Ami, what do we tell her? I told her I'd look out for everybody while she was gone, that we won't be taking any action against the ESPers. Rei even promised she wouldn't do anything, even if they attacked Hikawa shrine. Rei always keeps her promises, Usagi knows that. Why isn't that enough?" Ami sighed. "I think you know the answer to that." Minako regarded her for a moment, her brow furrowed. Then came comprehension ... and pain. "She's watched us all die," she breathed. Ami nodded. "Twice. We all died, and she was left alone. Twice." Minako shook her head. "But she's only leaving for a week. There hasn't been an attack in days, there may not even be one in a week. Even if there is, we won't be going anywhere near it. She knows that!" "Minako, did you ever notice that since Galaxia's defeat, Usagi has never once left this city unless either Mamoru or at least one of the Senshi was with her?" Minako looked as if she was trying to think of an example to prove her wrong. Ami knew there was none. "Oh God ... Ami, did she ever say anything to you?" Ami shook her head. "I doubt she's even said anything to Mamoru. She doesn't like us to know how she worries. But I'm sure the only reason she can even bear the thought of leaving us all here for a week is that he would be with her. This would be hard for her even if Saori hadn't said those things." "Oh ..." Minako looked at her with imploring eyes. "Ami, what can we say to her?" Ami smiled. "Let's just go see her, okay? The words will come." Minako hesitated a moment, then nodded. "Okay." They continued down the hallway. One of the ushers of the wedding hall was standing in front of a doorway. He and Minako nodded to each other, and he opened the door for them. It would appear they were expected. It was a comfortable little sitting room, a nice quiet place for bride and groom to meet before heading out to say goodbye to their guests one last time. Usagi and Mamoru were sitting together on the loveseat. The table in front of them held two coffees that hadn't been touched. They had changed, and were presumably ready to go. But Usagi looked far from ready. "Hi, you two!" Minako said brightly. "All ready for some fun in the sun?" At sight of them, she stood, letting go of Mamoru's hands. "Minako .." she walked over and took her friend's hands in her own. "I ... I don't think I can do this. I can't leave you all behind, not now." "Oh, don't be silly," Minako said. "I already told you we won't do anything while you're away. Everybody promised. You just call Setsuna on her cellular as many times as you want, and she'll tell you we're all okay as many times as you want." She winked. "Call her every morning, okay?" Ami wondered if she knew that would be about three in the morning local time ... maybe she did. Usagi shook her head. "I'll be so worried ..." "No, you won't. You'll take one look at Hawaii, and right away you'll be having so much fun you'll probably forget to call." "I don't know ..." Usagi said, looking down at her hands. Mamoru walked up and put a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, and he smiled fondly. "Usako, it's up to you. I don't want you to make any decision you're not comfortable with. We can go now or some other time, whichever you prefer." "Usagi." Ami had her attention now. She stepped closer, looked into Usagi's eyes. "Usagi, we'll never leave you again. We'll never let you be alone again. I promise." "Ami-chan ..." Usagi ran over and hugged her tightly. "I'm sorry. I'm being silly, aren't I?" Ami stroked the back of her neck. "Silly girl. Silly, silly girl." After a little while, she managed to extricate herself from Usagi's embrace. "You still have to say goodbye to your family, and then to everybody else." Usagi sniffed, carefully dabbed at a tear with her handkerchief. "Okay." "We'd better get out of your hair, then," Minako said. Usagi took Minako's hand in both her own. "Please watch out for everyone while we're gone." Minako winked. "Leave it to me. They're all safe in my hands." While Minako and Usagi were talking, Ami spared a glance at Mamoru. He didn't have to say how grateful he was to her, the look he gave her said it all. His wife was happy again, that's all that mattered. Usagi gave each of her bridesmaids a big hug on the way out to their limousine. Minako was crying buckets again. Ami asked Setsuna to take them to Minako's place first. By the time they dropped her off, her eyes were all red again but she was pretty much done. Before being dropped off herself, Ami warned Setsuna that she could expect to get calls from Hawaii at odd hours of the night. End Chapter 7 Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 8] Date: Tue, 06 Jan 1998 14:03:11 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com -------------------------------------------------------------------- Secrets Chapter 8 - Fire It was interesting to see the lengths to which people would go to avoid him. He had already seen several people cross to the other side of the street, throw him a few furtive glances as they walked past him on the other side of traffic, then cross back again. Only most of the children seemed unperturbed at the sight of a tall caucasian man in black suit and dark glasses standing at parade rest, closely watching his surroundings. Twice, a brave member of one of the groups of smaller children that passed him on their way to school had waved and said "haro" in perfect Engrish. He would surprise them by telling them in perfect monotone Japanese that they ought not to be talking to strange foreigners. They would continue silently on their way, rather more quickly than before. The person he was waiting for finally arrived. "Good morning, Smith- san," he said. "Keeping up appearances, I see. Do you enjoy scaring people?" "You're late," Smith said. "I was beginning to wonder if this was the right place. I lived here three years and I still can't figure how you actually find places in this city." "That's how we maintain our domestic economy," Takada said. "No gaijin could hope to find all the places they need to find to open a business here." "Why are we meeting in Juban anyway?" "Oh, I just like walking here. And there are one or two interesting places to drop by along the way. Also, one of my favourite restaurants is here, though recently I can never get in. Last week I finally broke down and made a lunch reservation." "Last week? Must be popular. I assume that's for two?" "Of course, my treat. We've got lots of time, so shall we wander?" "Lead the way." They started walking. "All clear again last night," Smith said. "Yeah, I heard." "That's more than a week. Maybe your hunch was right, your contact with the Ancients really did know something." "I'm quite sure she did. And it's looking more and more like she's done something to stop whatever they were doing. We may have seen the last of it." "Even if we have found the culprits and they cease and desist, that leaves the one question they're going to ask back home. Why?" "Want me to speculate?" Takada asked. "Shoot." "In the past, members of the Order here have heard more than one Ancient say that being in certain holy places enhances their powers. Clarifies visions of clairvoyance, that sort of thing. That's one of the ways we've kept tabs on them. Members of the Shinto and Buddhist branches of the Order tend to be in those same holy sites, since those places enhance their own abilities. We keep note of known Ancients who show up and who they show up with. They sometimes bring their kids. We've got a sketchy family tree for them going back generations." "Then if they're really demolishing these places, they seem to be shooting themselves in the foot," Smith said. "Yeah. But think carefully about what we heard from one of those three monks, the one that saw the whole thing. The people he saw *took* something from the temple. I've heard operatives of the other branches claim to confirm this." "So they're trying to take whatever is in these places and bottle it?" "Something like that. The only thing I can't figure out is, why now? Why all of a sudden? In all the centuries the Order has watched them and other ESPers, we've never seen anything like this, at least never done so methodically." "Want me to speculate now?" Smith asked. "Go for it." "Simple. They've caught Millennium Fever." Takada chuckled. "Yeah, I guess there's a lot of it about. So what do you think they're trying to do about it?" "Maybe they're trying to make a customized, industrial strength, supercharged holy place that they can hide in when Armageddon comes." "Interesting. When I heard those latest witness reports, I was thinking more that whatever they were taking was being ... *consumed* somewhere." "Like a psychic drug?" Smith asked. "Or food. If they're just stockpiling - or whatever you want to call it - perhaps that explains why they were more easily put off." "Also suggests that if times get more desperate, they may become inclined to go after more. By the way, are we climbing these stairs for our health?" Takada had steered them through the huge entrance gate of a shrine, which led immediately up a ridiculously long set of stone stairs. "This is one of the places I wanted to show you. Hikawa shrine." "I read the plate. Sounds vaguely familiar, now you mention it." "It's mentioned in the first file I sent you. There were a series of reports of paranormal activity in this area around the time sightings of the so called Sailor Senshi began. One of the earliest ones was right around here." "The one with all those buses disappearing?" "Yes." "Well, of all the stuff I read about, that seems like one of the more benign. Plenty of worse things happened in other parts of town." "This place is special for a different reason." "You think it's at risk of being attacked?" "No more so than hundreds of other shrines. What makes it special is who lives here." They crested the top of the stairs, which opened onto the surprisingly spacious grounds of the shrine. There were already a few people about, either praying at the shrine or just walking. Takada led him across the grounds and to an unobtrusive place beside a big oak tree. "You see the shrine maiden we passed by?" "Yeah." Smith certainly had noticed her, and the other three uncommonly beautiful young women she was talking cheerfully with. "That's Hino Rei. Possibly one of the most gifted clairvoyants in the country." "Ah, so that's it. Well, this one looks a bit more cheerful, maybe she has a sense of humour." Takada chuckled. "I wish. No, it's not really me who's got my eye on her. You remember Rising Wind?" "Who doesn't? The patents we picked up from that affair will be paying our bills for years." "She was at the first Hakone incident." "The one where the temple burned down? But that was years ago, she must have been just a kid." "She was eight, the youngest of the survivors, the youngest one there period. Yet her testimony was by far the most valuable, it is what ultimately allowed us to make the connection to Ingolffson. Too late to do any good, but after Ingolffson was killed in the second Hakone incident it was a moot point." "I remember that. You all figured the Oracle there had somehow gated Ingolffson in, whoever or whatever she really was." "The Fire Oracle Kozukuri. Her loss was a great blow to us. Hino was her star pupil." "When she was eight?" "She was gifted even then. She's barely twenty now, and it's thought her power is already greater than Kozukuri ever achieved." "Wait a second," Smith said. "If she participated in the ceremony that led to the first Hakone incident, she must know something about the Order." "Yes, she does. In fact, the Shinto branch has been in regular contact with her. They've asked her to enter the Order more than once, but she's always politely refused. She was very close to Kozukuri, she may blame us for her death." "Well, even if she doesn't work for us, maybe we can solicit her services. Get her to tell us which place will be hit next." "If it were that simple I'm sure she would have done it by now. Wouldn't surprise me if somebody at Metro already approached her. They don't like to advertise it, but she's actually helped them out in a couple of cases. High profile missing persons, that sort of thing." "Well, just getting a look at her was worth the hike up here." Takada went over to the shrine to pay his respects, then the two of them walked back to the stairway. The tall girl who Hino was talking to really gave Takada the eye. Women were ogling him a bit less since he started wearing the aura glasses, probably because they thought he was a gangster. But that lady sure didn't seem to care. Quite the build on her too, she must really work out. And Smith would swear he had seen the blonde girl before, on TV or something. Hino noticed them pass by, and bowed. "Thank you for visiting our shrine." "My pleasure," Takada said. The tall one was practically drooling now. The short blue-haired one was watching her with a look of sad resignation. They made their way back down the stairs. "Takada, I assume that sometime soon you'll be paying a courtesy call to your Ancient contact. I mean, to thank her without really thanking her, in your wonderfully oblique fashion." "If there are no further incidents in a couple of days, then yes I was planning on meeting her in Sapporo again." "Mind if I tag along?" Takada stopped walking. The two men faced each other. "Smith-san, I'm not going there to conduct an interrogation. As well as being my contact, I consider this woman to be a friend. Neither she nor her son deserved what they were put through. I treat them both with the utmost respect." "I understand," Smith said. They continued walking. Both men understood that the matter had been cleared without offense being taken by either. "Any particular reason?" Takada asked. "I'm more interested in meeting the boy. I understand she always has him with her." "Yes. I don't think he ever leaves her sight, and I mean that literally. What is your interest in him?" "From the way you've been describing his post-trauma behaviour, it sounds much like what one would expect from a child savant who had suddenly lost part of his gift." "You seem to be speaking from experience," Takada suggested. "Back at home office I worked on a project that involved isolating a young genius boy in an artificial environment. The idea was to recreate certain incidents and get the boy to relive what was going on in people's heads during said incidents, basis that input." "I never heard about this." Smith could hear the edge in Takada's voice. "It wasn't as bad as it sounds. The boy was essentially dysfunctional outside the centre. I really think we were doing him a favour. But some others didn't think so, and there was an attempt to kidnap him that turned out to be highly traumatic. It was at that point I was brought in, to assist in his rehabilitation. It was never really successful, but I learned a fair bit. Traumatized savants still tend to have photographic memory or some other form of total recall." "I think I see where this is headed," Takada said. Smith smiled. "Kids tend to give direct answers even to very indirect questions. Like I said, I learned a lot. You would never guess from looking at me, but I'm actually pretty good with kids." "Like the ones I saw running away from you today?" "Hey, that was for their own good. They really shouldn't be talking to strangers. Especially in this neighbourhood, you never know who's going to monster out." Takada sighed. "We always meet for dinner. I'll brief you more fully later on, but basically she thinks I'm an agent with Japanese intelligence. I've hinted we're a special unit not unlike the FBI's X-files." "Oh, that's rich." "Akira may or may not be talkative, he goes through phases." "Been there. Luck of the draw, I know." "We'll arrange a signal. If I think she's becoming uncomfortable about us talking with the boy, we back off." "Deal. So where are we off to next?" "A couple of antique shops. I've always suspected that some of the items there had spells on them, but I couldn't exactly cut open my hand in the middle of the shop. I want to see if these glasses can spot them." "Shopping trip, huh? Sounds like fun." ***** Shoji spotted the man he was looking for. He was sitting alone on a park bench. He was gaunt and unshaven. His long, greasy hair was in tangles and he wore a dirty trenchcoat, closed against the autumn morning chill. He appeared to have a constant case of the jitters. His limbs were quivering almost constantly. Every now and then, an arm or leg would jerk in a quick spasm. At first sight he just seemed to be staring off into space, his line of sight only changed now and then by a jerk of his head that might have been another spasm. But closer observation showed that the turns of his head were calculated. He was following people. Getting closer, you could see it in his eyes. They locked on to anybody who happened to walk down the path in front of him. It was promising to be a sunny day that would warm up quickly, so there were people walking about Juban park, just enjoying the day or taking a shortcut to wherever they were going. For the most part they didn't notice the man's attentions, passing him off as a vagrant or a drunk. Shoji walked over to the bench and unceremoniously sat down beside the man, laying his arm casually along the back of the bench. "Hey Tetsuya, how's it going?" Tetsuya grunted. That meant it was going okay. "You interested in some breakfast?" Tetsuya grunted. That meant yes. Shoji stood up. Tetsuya slowly got to his feet. Shoji kept a slow pace, allowing Tetsuya to shuffle along beside him. He'd really gone downhill since Shoji last saw him. Probably wouldn't last the winter, the rate he was going. Shoji had seen other black sheep like him. They seemed to think they had the Eye of God, then after a while they figured they'd seen it all and they just didn't care anymore. Looked like Tetsuya was at that stage now. They sat down at a little noodle shop and Shoji ordered for the two of them. Tetsuya ate very slowly and with utterly mechanical, clockwork movements. Like the act of eating had no more meaning for his conscious mind, and only his hindbrain drove the process on. When they were done, Shoji walked him back to his park bench. They sat down. Shoji draped his arms across the back of the bench. "Tell me what you see, Tetsuya." Tetsuya grunted. That meant the question had registered. They sat in silence for a couple of minutes. Then a young couple walked by. "She's pregnant," Tetsuya said in a scratchy, toneless voice that was barely audible. "He doesn't know. It isn't his. He thinks she's too fat." A minute later, a young man walked by. "Hates his mother-in-law. Hopes she'll die soon. Inheritance. Would like to poison her. Hasn't got the guts." A young woman in a hurry. "Boss made a pass at her. Promotion. Still thinking about it." A group of young schoolgirls. "Two of them abused by their fathers." An old woman. "Hoarded food during the war. Just for herself." Shoji sighed. He leaned back and looked up into the sky. "I don't know. Pretty boring stuff, actually. Seen anything really interesting lately?" "Yeah." Shoji just waited, let it come of its own accord. After half a minute it did. "Babe at this shrine. Works there. Got a mean streak. Aura's like all sharp edges and stuff. Mostly red, but there's this white part and it don't move. Pure like it never changes an' it's been there forever." That was about as many sentences as he had ever heard Tetsuya string together all at once. This girl must have made quite an impression. Shoji grinned. "Do tell." ***** "Onesama!" Miho called as she came running. Rei heard her sandals clicking on the stone path even before she called out. She looked up from her work. She had just strung up the sign indicating the shrine was closed for the day, and was doing a little cleaning up around the gateway at the top of the stone stairway. "Hi Miho-chan. You done closing up already?" "Yes," she said, smiling brightly. "I just wanted to ask, before I finish the chores for the night, can I go practice some more?" "What, archery? There isn't much daylight left." "There's enough time for one round, I think. Before it gets too dark." "Well, you'd better get going, then. Sorry I can't join you, I've got friends coming over right away." "Thank you, onesama!" Miho turned and ran back towards the shrine building, behind which they had the archery range. Rei smiled as she watched Miho run. Rei had done archery since childhood, but had started practicing in earnest since her Flame Sniper attack awakened. As usual, Miho wanted to try everything that her onesama did. She was even trying her hand at fire readings. It was a shame she hadn't been encouraged at an earlier age, she had considerable natural ability. When she was about finished cleaning up the litter around the gate, she glimpsed somebody coming up the steps. Ami, right on time as usual. Rei stood behind the sign strung across the entrance. She had taken to putting up a sign both here and below, to impress upon people that closed means closed. She put her hands on her hips. "By what right do you enter these grounds after hours, girl?" Ami stopped and assumed a similar pose. "By right of invitation to the first scheduled now-we-can-gossip-about-Usagi party." "Then enter, and be prepared to hear the unvarnished truth." "Pardon my rudeness." Ami took the last few steps two at a time, leaped over the 'Closed' sign and landed gracefully right in front of Rei. "I've always wanted to do that." Ami had become a lot more playful these past couple of days. Rei could guess why. "So, the truth comes out, you've always harboured a secret desire to break all the rules." "Must be the company I keep." Rei winked. "Well, hopefully getting married will put you back on the straight and narrow." That brought the smile she had expected. She bent and picked up the pail containing her work things and refuse. She'd just lay it aside near the residence for now. She started in that direction and Ami followed. "Yuichirou has the room all ready for us." "That was very sweet of him. Especially considering how we've been monopolizing you for the wedding preparations. You probably haven't had much time to go out anywhere." "No, we haven't. But after this post-wedding girls' night out, we both promised that will change. And after our current business is resolved, we're planning a big trip." Ami stopped walking. She frowned. "What do you mean our current business?" That was usually how they referred to Senshi business without really saying so. Rei sighed. She wanted to tell everybody at once, but there were reasons why Ami was a special case. "Yesterday I told him everything. About who I am." Her eyes went wide. "Rei-chan ..." she breathed. Of all people, Ami would understand what that meant. Rei smiled and nodded, confirming that she was right. "He asked me a year ago, in fact. I told him I had to think about it. Well, I thought about it." Ami stepped closer, put a hand on her arm. "Rei ... you told him everything?" "He already suspected a lot. He says it doesn't matter, about what I am or how long I might live or anything. I believe him." "Rei-chan ..." Just before she crushed Rei in an embrace, Rei saw the understanding in her eyes. They had both been accepted, been offered love by somebody who knew that they were something more than human, something different. Rei could only wrap one arm around her friend, the other still holding her pail. After a little while, Ami stepped back and dried her tears. "Congratulations." "Thanks." Ami laughed. "It looks like she inspired us both." "How's that?" "Usagi. Her wedding." Yes, Rei thought. Perhaps for different reasons, their courage came from the same source. On impulse, she reached out and stroked Ami's cheek. "I guess she inspires us all." Ami took her hand, kissed it lightly. "It looks like we'll both have some good news for her when she gets back." "Right." Ami hadn't broken the news until after Usagi and Mamoru were gone, not wanting to steal their thunder. Rei had ached to do as Ami had, to give her answer to Yuichirou even as they danced at her Princess' wedding. But their situation was different, her answer had to be accompanied by a great deal of explaining. A whole night's worth, as it had turned out. "Let's go, I want to get rid of this thing," she said raising the pail. Before heading for the house again, she took one quick look across the grounds. She sighed. "Never fails. Hang on a second, Ami, I'll be right back." She put the pail down and walked back towards the entrance. A young couple was walking towards them. Apparently they couldn't read. When Rei had walked within easy earshot, she stood on the path and bowed. "I'm very sorry, but the shrine is closed for the day." "That's okay, we won't be here long." The man flipped off his hat and his red hair spilled out. The girl's eyes began to glow. Rei's shout of warning was cut off by paralyzing pain ripping through her body. In the midst of her agony and panic, she recognized the feeling. Her soul was being ripped out. Just like the Death Busters had done. Only this time it was taking forever and ever. "What are you doing?" Ami's voice. Not Mercury's. She hadn't transformed. She hadn't realized yet who these people were. Had this pain only been going on for a couple of seconds? Didn't seem possible. The pain stopped. It was euphoric. No ... it had just subsided. Enough to unlock her muscles, let her fall to her knees. Running footsteps behind her. Gods, by now Ami must realize... The pain subsided further, and the girl's eyes glowed brighter. That didn't seem to make sense, wasn't she the one doing this? The footsteps had stopped. Ami screaming. Movement to her right. She turned to look. Ami, flying away from them at hellish speed, tumbling over and over. Slamming into one of the great wooden columns of the shrine. Her limp form seemed to fall to the ground in slow motion. Rei reached behind her, willed her transformation wand into her hand. It didn't come in time. Pain exploded in her head again. All her muscles seized up. She couldn't even close her eyes. It was taking forever. Maybe if she stopped fighting the pain would stop. It was taking forever and ever. A scream. The pain stopped again. This time it really was euphoric. She slumped down to the ground in slow motion. Her muscles were utterly limp, unable to obey her. It was hard to work up the motivation to care, so blissful was the relief. Her head hit against a flagstone. It was hard to believe, but at another time she would have called that pain. How silly. She was at least able to move her eyes. She looked up at the two ESPers. The man was staggering back with an arrow in his shoulder, his face twisted in shock and panic. The girl was uttering the horrible animal sounds of those who cannot hear their own voice and had never been taught to compensate. She was deaf. Rei tried following the man's gaze, found she could actually lift her head up a little. She saw Miho standing beside the shrine building, partly obscured by it. The young girl was nocking another arrow in her practice bow. The man screamed again, a rasping howl of rage and hate. The whole courtyard was lit up by a stream of flame that mirrored but utterly drowned out the orange glow of the setting sun. The flame leaped out at Miho, and she disappeared as it enveloped her and the whole side of the shrine. Rei was only vaguely aware of the man pulling the arrow out of his shoulder. The practice arrow came out easily, but he still bellowed curses. The girl was beside him, making little mewling sounds. Rei stared at the burning shrine, her numbed mind hardly able to comprehend what was happening. Ami still hadn't moved. She was lying near the other side of the shrine, the flames hadn't reached her yet. Some sixth sense prompted her to look back at her attackers. The girl's eyes were glowing again, and she raised her arms up, her fingers curled into claws. Rei arced her back and screamed. It was different this time. Not being pulled out, just assaulted. A mind-numbing explosion of white-hot agony to break her down, soften her up, make her soul ripe for the picking. The girl grunted, and it was over. Rei was surprised to find that she was still in her quivering, pain- wracked body. The girl was down on the ground. Rei's grandfather was standing between them. The cool, tactical part of her mind that had kicked in at the first sign of danger was telling her that her grandfather's aggressive stance was a bluff. He was favouring one leg, putting hardly any weight on it. He must have hit the girl with a flying kick between the shoulder blades, just strong enough to knock her down. He would never really hurt a woman, even one who was attacking his granddaughter. But he had probably come down hard on legs far too old for that sort of strain. He couldn't walk now, much less attack. And Rei could still barely move. From behind her a loud battle cry and the sound of running feet. Rei whimpered. Yuichirou. Oh God, no. She tried to get to her feet, to get in the way, but it was no good. She could only watch it happen again. The man raised the hand that had been staunching the flow of blood from his shoulder. His blood-soaked palm glowed. This time it went right over her head. It was blinding, and the heat felt like it would incinerate her. She swung around, her arms gave out, she slumped down on the ground. A man-shaped comet hit the ground and burned brightly. The fireball that had gone through him just kept going, splashed over the house he had been running from. Rei screamed impotently, watching them both burn. "Rei, get out of here!" her grandfather shouted. Oh God, they don't know he's helpless, Rei thought. They'll kill him. Rage and desperation pushed through the pain, forcing her tortured body to do as she willed it. She levered herself up on one knee and her arm shot behind her. That invisible place behind her opened up in response to her desire, deposited her wand in her hand. She thrust it up over her head. With no words spoken, by sheer force of will alone, she summoned the flame of Mars. In an instant the flame subsided and Sailor Mars shot to her feet. She looked over her grandfather's head at the two enemies who were already dead, her vision blurred by tears of rage and grief that just wouldn't stop. The girl was just getting to her feet. The man was staring at Mars in disbelief. She linked her fingers together and locked her arms, two index fingers pointed right between the man's eyes. "BURN IN HELL YOU FREAK!" The Fire Soul leaped out at him. It splashed against a wall of flame that came up between them. Mars howled and the flames shooting from her fingers flashed white-hot. The barrier wavered, but did not falter. Rage alone was not enough to sustain the attack. The fire sputtered out and died, as her spirit succumbed to the ravages of what it had endured. The wall of roiling orange flame burned on, hiding the man from her sight. Rei heard a hideous cry of animal rage. She looked up, still shaking violently from the extremity of her attack. The girl was floating in the air, her eyes glowing, her arms spread out before her. Mars braced herself for the pain she knew would come. There was a crashing sound behind her. Like the burning house was collapsing, but the sound was wrong. Something prompted her to turn and look. The burning timbers of the roof were all breaking away, splintering, floating over the blazing inferno. The burning splinters all aligned themselves on her. She was in the air before her conscious mind even knew why. Like bullets leaving trails of smoke the splinters whistled under her feet. *Oh God.* She landed and whipped around to look where she had leaped from, where her grandfather was supposed to be. He wasn't there. He was lying directly under the girl. Something was sticking out of his chest, something that still smouldered. She tried to tell herself he was moving slightly, it wasn't just a trick of the flickering firelight. The girl brought her arms up again. This time the burning shrine was to Mars' back. *Same trick, bitch?* She thrust one arm straight out at the girl, brought the other up next to her ear. The fiery red bow of the Flame Sniper appeared in response. Practically before it finished materializing Rei let the shimmering red arrow loose, racing straight for the freak's rancid heart. It exploded just in front of her. The spherical barrier around her flickered, then disappeared like a popping soap bubble. The girl still floated there. The barrier had held. "Oak Evolution!" A blizzard of shimmering green streaks of light assaulted the girl, exploding against her barrier, forcing her back. Rei traced them back to their source. Sailor Jupiter was a barely discernable blur, spinning at impossible speed like a figure skater, the deadly beams shooting out from the green whirlwind of shimmering light that surrounded her. Her attack done, Jupiter whirled to a stop and the light dispersed. She crouched down, scanning for her next target. If she was here, others were on their way, Rei thought. Just have to keep these freaks busy until more help arrives. She brought her hand up to her ear again, locking her other arm out in front of her, aiming at the man this time. The bow took just an extra moment to shimmer into existence. She nearly fainted from the effort. Not many of these left in her, better make it count. She was hoping his attention would stay on Jupiter. It did not. He saw her an instant before she loosed the glowing arrow. His flame barrier came up again, deflecting it. She spared a glance at Jupiter, wondering why she hadn't attacked again. She was on the ground, convulsing. A man with wild, staring eyes was standing over her. The backstabber Venus had told them about. "Bastard!" Even as she brought her arms up to try and will the Flame Sniper into existence one more time, she heard the timbers cracking behind her. Survival instinct won out over killer instinct, and she turned to the new threat. No blizzard of splinters this time, just enormous blazing timbers bearing down on her. She leaped away, barely avoiding the first of them. A smaller one she hadn't noticed hit her in the side, throwing her off balance. She landed badly, falling to one knee, the wind knocked out of her. A fireball came bearing down on her. No hope of avoiding it. She jumped anyway. The edge of the inferno licked at her legs. She screamed, falling down in a heap. She couldn't get up. The next one would finish her. It didn't come. When her head cleared a bit she rolled over, facing where she had thought the attack would come from. The backstabber had gone over to join the other two. In the blink of an eye, they were gone. They had run away. There was so much to grieve for, Rei could feel it pushing her over the edge. She fought it back, focusing on just one thing, knowing she could deal with just one thing. With agonizing slowness, she got up and limped over to her grandfather. When she fell and couldn't get up, she crawled to him. He was breathing. She tried to focus on that fact, to ignore the great blackened splinter protruding from his abdomen. His face was screwed up in agony. "Grandpa?" she whimpered, gently cradling his face in her hands. He opened his eyes. He looked bewildered. "Who ...?" he croaked. "It's me. Rei." Her voice was still a whimper. Tears were blurring her vision again. "Rei?" As she blinked her tears away, she could see his face clearer. He recognized her now. He looked her up and down and smiled. "Heh. Should have known. My little firebrand. Who else could wield the Fire of Mars?" He choked, coughed up an alarming amount of blood. His breathing was becoming more laboured. "Don't talk, grandpa. Just rest. You'll be okay." "Yes ... rest." He closed his eyes. "Yes, that's it." She was just mouthing the words, hardly making a sound. "Just rest for a while. You'll be okay." She became aware of other voices. Venus shouting orders. She looked up. The refugees were here too. Venus was kneeling over Ami. Thetan was running to her. K'Theelm was running over to where Jupiter was lying. Jeneth was running towards her. She looked different, barely recognizable. Grey skin and dark, dark eyes. "I know we've disobeyed your orders," Jeneth said as she approached. "I could feel you fighting off their attack. We had to come." "Please," Mars begged. "Help him. He's my grandfather. You have to help him." Jeneth glanced at Rei's grandfather for just a moment. She knelt down on the other side of her grandfather's prone form. She reached over and took both of Mars' hands in her own. "Mars ..." "No." Jeneth shook her head. "I'm so sorry. He's gone. There's nothing I can do." "No. Please." But she could see it in Jeneth's manner, just that perfect blend of firmness and sympathy that the best of healers used when they told you there's no more hope. Mars closed her eyes. One slow breath. Two. Three. Four. Five. She opened her eyes. "The girl by the shrine was thrown against the building. Jupiter was attacked by one of the ESPers. Please see what you can do for them." "I'll do what I can." She released Mars' hands, got up and ran over to where K'Theelm was examining Jupiter. Venus and Thetan were doing something around Ami. It looked like they were making splints or something. So she was alive, but she had broken bones. The fire was spreading, they had to get her away from the shrine. Mars heard footfalls from the stairway. The unmistakable sound of people running at superhuman speed. Uranus and Neptune came rocketing through the gate as one, stopping dead and assuming combat stance. Just as quickly, they dropped their guard, gaping at the hellish scene. The fires were blazing out of control. There were two smouldering heaps where Miho and Youichirou had fallen. Burning debris was scattered all over. Pluto and Saturn came right up behind them. Their reaction was much the same. There were no enemies left, nothing to shoot at. Saturn ran straight for Mars, but stopped cold as she saw who was lying there. "Oh, Rei-" "Mercury and Jupiter are hurt," Mars interrupted her. "Please see if you can help them. There's nothing you can do here." Saturn nodded, and ran over to where Venus and Thetan still seemed to be preparing to move Ami. She shifted direction when Venus waved her over to where Jupiter lay. Uranus, Neptune and Pluto walked slowly onto the grounds. Rei had never seen them look so shocked. "You three!" Venus shouted, pointing at them. "Why in hell don't you take Saturn's example and make yourselves useful? We've got to get this girl out of here!" The three Senshi seemed to come out of a trance. Pluto murmured something, and suddenly they were all in motion again. Uranus and Neptune ran over to where Ami lay, Pluto ran over to Jupiter. Rei put her hands together before her, and murmured a tearful prayer for her grandfather's spirit. She heard her house collapse, felt a wave of heat as the fire leaped even higher. She didn't even bother to look. A minute later she saw them move Ami away from the shrine before the flames could get near. Thetan had broken off impossibly large pieces of timber to fashion a rude stretcher for her. Venus shouted orders Mars couldn't quite hear. The rest of them moved Jupiter and Ami off the grounds and out of sight. Venus ran over to her. She knelt and put a hand on Mars' shoulder. "Mars, can you tell me what happened?" She asked softly. "It was the ESPers. They killed everybody." It took a moment to sink in, what she meant. "Yuichirou? Miho?" "Dead." "Oh my God." Mars could see Venus trying so hard to feel anger, but feeling only guilt. She had promised Usagi she would protect them. "Venus, I'd like to stay here. I can't just ... leave." "I understand." Venus closed her eyes, put her hand to her breast. Her whole body shimmered, and she transformed back into Minako. "I'll stay here with you. The others will take care of Ami-chan and Mako-chan." Mars transformed back into Rei. Minako came around and knelt beside her, put an arm around her shoulders. Rei looked in her eyes. "I would have kept my promise, Minako. I'd have let them demolish my shrine, I'd have just stood and watched, because I promised her." "I know," Minako said. "I know." "But they attacked *me*. What was I supposed to do?" "I know." Minako put her other arm around Rei, drew her closer until their foreheads met. "I know." "It wasn't my fault." "I know." "Wasn't ..." By the time the first of the emergency workers made it up onto the grounds, Rei had cried herself hoarse. ***** Kaori was a light sleeper, so the telephone woke her on the first ring. She glanced at the clock by her bed. Almost three in the morning. Who on Earth could be calling at this hour? She picked up the phone. It was her own personal line, so it wouldn't ring anywhere else in the house. "Hello?" "It's me." It was Setsuna's voice. She only ever called here to set up a meeting. Certainly never at this hour. "Setsuna-san. Is something wrong?" Her voice remained ice cold. "Your son just killed three people." "What?" "He and his friends attacked another shrine. You can get the details from him. Tell him if we ever find them, we will kill them all." There was a click, and the line went dead. Kaori just listened to the dial tone for a while, her heart racing. She shuddered. Setsuna's curt message shocked her more than any amount of polemics could have. She dialled her son's number. It was picked up at the third ring. "Yeah?" "Shoji?" "Hi Mom." He sounded weary, but somehow it was wrong, it was not just sleepiness of somebody who had been woken. "Shoji, did you attack another shrine?" He laughed, then grunted. "Ow, that hurt." "Are you okay?" "Yeah, Mom, I'll be okay. Don't know how you found out, it hasn't even hit the news yet." "The news? What happened?" Laughter again. Lighter, as if he was being careful not to move too much. "Well, basically we got our asses kicked." "Is Yui okay?" "Yeah, just a few cuts and bruises. I got one that really hurts, but I'll live." "Was anybody else hurt?" Shoji sighed heavily, causing static on the line. "These outsiders attacked us, I had to waste two of them. Then these chicks in skirts started tossing spells at us and we had to book." The Sailor Senshi, Kaori thought. Oh my God. "Shoji, I need you to tell me something. Did you hurt any of the women who were using spells?" "Akechi dropped one of them. Said he fried her brain." Kaori gasped. *That makes three.* At least the Matriarch didn't know about the Senshi. But it didn't matter, the offense was still a capital one. "Shoji, I'm going to have to inform the Matriarch right away." There was a slight pause. "Yeah, I thought you might." "You had better be prepared to present yourself to her." "No, I don't think so. You know what she would do." Yes, she knew. Full mindscan, at least a partial mindwipe. Attitude adjustment, as Himiko liked to call it. "Shoji, you know if you don't come to her she will send for you anyway." "Well, unless she gets here in the next two minutes, we're not going to be here." Kaori gasped. "Shoji, no! You can't-" The line went dead. She called back, got a busy signal. Probably off the hook or disconnected. She had no reason to disbelieve what he said. They were gone by now. They had gone rogue. By the time she got dressed, she had worked out what she would say to the Matriarch. She walked out into the garden, lighting her way with a glowing ball of plasma floating over her palm. She stepped onto one of the big flagstones and vanished. ***** The uniformed officers at the gate told Saori where she could find the man in charge, the man who had called her. She climbed the long set of stairs, weaving her way between the tangle of fire hoses that snaked their way up. Must have had a hell of a time getting them up there, she thought. Nothing her colleague had told her could prepare her for what she saw. As he had said, it was as utterly different from the other sites as it could be. About the only thing the same was that the place was totalled. But this one had burned to the ground, and looked like it had been racked with explosions as well. There was debris everywhere. Firemen were still hosing down the smouldering ruins. Plumes of smoke rose up into a sky showing the first glimmer of dawn. She found who she was looking for. He saw her approach and waved, walking over to her. "Evening, Saori." "Good morning." He chuckled. "Well, the morning part anyway." "So you figure this is one of mine, huh?" He grinned. "I would very much like it to be." No doubt. Nobody wanted the Weird Shit on their plate. "Okay, convince me." "We only got to talk to the one witness for a minute." "Why, was she hurt?" He coughed nervously. "Uh ... no. It's a bit delicate. Her name is Hino." That took a moment to register. The city councillor. She sighed. "Relation?" "Daughter. We sent her straight to a safe house, last I heard she was sleeping." Councillor Hino had a less than cordial relationship with the chief of police. He was right, this was very delicate. "So what did she say in one minute?" "She got a good look at what we presume are the perps before they knocked her out. Guy with red hair, short girl. When she woke up, they were gone. Her friend didn't see a thing." "Friend?" He flipped open his notebook. "A miss Aino. Idol singer. Apparently on her way here to meet Hino-san, got here after it was all over." "So you want to hand this over to me basis that?" "No. I've been pressing the forensic guys for guesses on what happened. They're being very noncommittal. You know the way they get when they haven't got a clue." Well, that was going to change. Very, very quickly. "Okay, I'm convinced. Give me what you've got." He looked pleasantly surprised. And relieved. He flipped back through his notes. "Three dead. One identified as the witness' grandfather. Two others too badly burned to identify as yet. We suspect they are the two other residents, we're trying to get confirmation." "Let's have a look." Saori could see why forensics were being noncommittal. The stake through the old man's side looked like it had gone through with the speed of a rifle bullet, like shrapnel from an explosion. But the debris wasn't right for an explosion, even she could see that. More like it had been shot out of a cannon or something. The other two bodies were little more than charred skeletons, but one of them was nowhere near the buildings. Like he'd been struck by lightning. "There are signs that other people were here," her colleague said. "Multiple sets of footprints, though so far it's hard to make sense out of what happened." Saori grinned. "Excuse me for a moment, Lieutenant. I took the liberty of calling in somebody who just might be able to make sense of it. Back in a second." She walked over to meet the man who was approaching them. He had his big black case with him. "Morning, Saori-san," he said. "Morning." She and the forensics man hadn't gotten off to a great start, what with her always pressing him to make too many speculations too quickly. But he had gradually warmed up to her way of doing things, had gradually come to see that wild leaps of fancy could make the impossible make sense far better than doubetalk could. And they had found that they just plain liked each other. "Well, it's official, this is one of ours," Saori told him. He took a look around. "Rather different M.O." "Bodies too, this time." His expression darkened. "So you said. I assume work's been done already." "Yes, but they're all humming and hawing. We'll need to light a fire under them, make sure they say what they mean and mean what they say." "I'll get on it. So where are the Blues Brothers?" She sniffed. "Our Interpol colleagues went on a trip to Hokkaido yesterday. Some other business." "Right. Just like people go to Hawaii to take care of business." "Agent Takada did tell me to call him on his cellular if there were any further attacks." She glanced at her watch. "Now, do I want to get him up or do I want to let him get his beauty sleep?" "Perhaps you'll want to wait until my initial report." Saori smiled. "Yes, in fact I think that would be prudent." The Blues Brothers hadn't been any help to her, just poking about asking irrelevant questions. They could wait. Her forensics man went about his business, and Saori took a moment to look out over the city being lit by the slowly emerging dawn light. Juban. Why was that familiar? Oh yes, the first of her cases involving a Senshi sighting was near here. This was, after all, supposedly the heart of their territory, or their beat or whatever. And she also had an old friend living here. An old friend with a big secret. Maybe it was time to go pay him a visit, just for old times' sake. He should be back from his honeymoon in just a few days. ***** Rei woke with a start. She took a shuddering breath. A nightmare, it had been a nightmare. Was everything okay now? No. It wasn't. It had been real. She remembered now. The house with all the police. Minako helping her wash herself, putting her to bed. Exhaustion taking over, forcing her into a fretful sleep. She whimpered, burying her face in the pillow. "Rei-chan?" A gentle voice. She sat up, becoming more aware of her surroundings. The room Minako had brought her to. She was in a white bathrobe, lying on top of the bedspread. Then the voice registered. *Her* voice. She turned around. "Usagi- chan ..." Usagi sat on the edge of the bed and reached out to her. Rei leaned over and they joined in a close, gentle embrace. Usagi was safe in her arms, Rei thought. Focus on that. Even if everything else was wrong, that one thing was right. If just that one thing was right, she could make it. Rei just wanted to stay like this, to have Usagi hold her, not say anything. But there was something Rei needed to ask. She leaned back a little, met Usagi's pain-filled blue eyes. "Usagi, how are Ami-chan and Mako-chan?" "They're both in a hospital. Ami woke up for a while. But she won't be moving for a couple of days. Jeneth says she can mend her broken bones in a couple of days. She'll be okay." "And Mako-chan?" Usagi hesitated. "She's ... still unconscious. Jeneth healed what the ESPer did to her before we took her to a hospital. We're not sure how long before she wakes up." "She's in a coma, isn't she?" Usagi nodded. "That's what they said." "Oh God." Rei clamped her eyes shut. No, not her too. She felt one of Usagi's hands move from their loose embrace, caress her cheek. She opened her eyes again. Usagi was looking very intently at her. She looked like she was very nervous about what she was about to say. "Rei-chan, do you remember what happened?" she asked very softly. Rei knew what she was really asking. She had to be very careful how she tried to answer, otherwise she knew she couldn't get the words out. "The ESPers attacked me. Miho and Yuichirou and my Grandfather all tried to fight them." She took a deep breath. "I'm the only one who survived." Usagi continued to lightly caress her cheek. "Rei, I'm so sorry," she said, her voice almost breaking. "I should have been here." Rei took her hand, held it tightly. "Usagi, I beg you. Don't blame yourself. Everybody's trying to blame themselves. Minako, Hotaru, everybody. Even me. We're not gods, we can't protect everybody." Usagi shook her head. "I just don't understand why. What do they want?" Rei jumped on the chance to have something practical to focus on, to divert her from contemplating the shattered wreckage of her life. "What that girl was doing to me, it felt like when the Death Busters took my heart crystal. Or when Galaxia took my Star Seed. Whenever some force of chaos is looking for human souls, we Senshi always seem to be on the short list. We may all be in danger." She surprised herself by showing a smile, albeit an ironic one. "It's just as well my house burned down. They saw me transform, they know who I am. It wouldn't have been safe for me there." Usagi gasped. "Oh God ... you don't think that's what happened to Mako-chan?" Rei shook her head. "No, the girl didn't get near her. It was the backstabber that did it. Jeneth called what he did to K'Theelm a psionic attack." She squeezed Usagi's hand, tried to smile. "K'Theelm survived it, I'm sure Mako-chan will pull through too." Usagi calmed down a bit. "Yes, I'm sure she will." Something occurred to Rei. "Where's Minako?" She had been in here when Rei had fallen asleep. "In the next room sleeping. She'd been here all night and all day, I said I'd watch over you. That was just a little while ago." "You and Mamoru must have just got here." She nodded. "Setsuna arranged a private jet. It sounds like she had it planned ahead of time." Rei stroked her hair. "I'm so glad you're here. I'd be lost without you." Usagi smiled. "I feel the same. They kept telling me you were okay. But until they let me in here to see you, I was so afraid." Rei frowned. "Did you have some trouble with the police?" "Just for a little while. They didn't want to tell me where you were. But Saori took care of everything." "Saori?" Rei vaguely remembered her, an old classmate of Mamoru's. But she didn't remember seeing her last night when the police arrived. "Yes. Mamo-chan talked to her. When we told her you were our friend, she had us driven here. Rei, he'd like to see you too." Rei nodded. "I'd like that." Usagi's expression sobered. "They said to tell you your father will be here this afternoon." Unbidden came the thought that this would be the first time in years she had seen her father on anything other than her birthday. "He's probably coming to tell me I can stay at one of his apartments. There's at least one he almost never uses." She felt no bitterness, just resignation. Her father gave her a family name, financial security and birthday presents, she had long since learned not to expect more. Usagi took both Rei's hands, looked earnestly into her eyes. "Rei, I've been talking to Mamo-chan. Until you can find a proper place to stay, a new home, we'd like you to stay with us." Rei was completely taken by surprise. She shook her head. "No, I couldn't. It wouldn't be right." "Wouldn't be right?" Usagi sounded almost angry. "Rei, what could be wrong about living with the two people who love you more than anyone in the world?" Rei thought of all the reasons. But put next to Usagi's simple words, they seemed so trite, not even worth mentioning. And suddenly she just couldn't even imagine doing anything different. "Thank you. I'll ... just crash on your couch or something until I can find a place." Usagi leaned forward and kissed her cheek. "You'll do no such thing. You and I will share a room and you can stay as long as you want. You can wear my things until we get you some new stuff. I know I have no fashion sense, but try to bear with it." Rei wiped a tear away and smiled. "Baka." ***** It was the third funeral in as many days, but the first one Hotaru and her sister Senshi attended. The funeral for Rei's grandfather was a much larger, more public affair than the others had been. Despite his eccentricities, he had been a prominent, well respected member of the community. Setsuna had thought it best for them to attend just this one, so they could pay their respects while not being intrusive. As expected, Usagi and all the others were there with Rei. Everybody was very polite. Rei graciously accepted their condolences, told them she was happy they had come. It had been the most agonizing thing Hotaru had ever gone through in her life. Only Ami had been anything more than cordial towards her. Probably out of gratitude, if nothing else. She and Jeneth had been working on her day and night these past few days. She would still be walking with a cane for days more. But even that was remarkable, considering the injuries she had sustained. Nobody spoke for a long time, as Setsuna was driving them back home. Finally, Hotaru couldn't stand it any longer. "This was our fault. We should have been helping them fight the Ancients. We could have caught them long ago. Then none of this would have happened." "It's not your fault, it's mine." Hotaru looked at Setsuna sitting next to her. Her eyes were on the road, her face expressionless. "I allowed a powerful, unpredictable enemy to roam free," she continued. "And you're right, we probably could have caught them." "We should think about what we do next," Michiru said from the back seat. "That's simple," Haruka said. "We hunt them down and kill them. Setsuna, you know where this Ancient woman lives, right?" "Yes, but that knowledge does us no good. I told her what her son did, and by now she has informed their Matriarch. I've known other Ancients, and one thing I know about them is they show no mercy to their own kind who break their rules. Two of their strictest rules are never to harm outsiders and never to let outsiders see them use their powers. By now, the ones responsible have been severely punished, either killed or subjected to some psychic torture we cannot even imagine. That is unless they escaped and went rogue." "Went rogue?" Michiru asked. "My contact has alluded to Ancients who have left the family and gone into hiding, become outcasts for whatever reason. The point is, if the ones responsible are still at large, my contact is the last person who would know where they are." "Could your contact tell us why they attacked Rei?" Hotaru asked. She felt bad about how bitter that sounded. "I doubt it," Setsuna said, showing no reaction to Hotaru's tone. "She was obviously shocked when I told her that her son had killed somebody. He and his friends must have been acting on their own initiative. I can't imagine what their purpose might be." "I'm more concerned with how they found her," Haruka said. "We could all be in danger." "Yes, we could," Setsuna said. "Just as we always are when enemies are hunting people with strong spiritual energy. We all need to exercise caution." "Which means we need to warn the others," Hotaru said. "We need to tell them the truth." "They are already on their guard," Michiru said. "Nevertheless, I think they deserve to know what's going on." Hotaru wondered why they didn't deserve it before now. She wanted so much not to feel bitter, but this sudden turnabout seemed just a little too convenient. "I'll go to the Princess," Setsuna said. "I owe her an explanation. And an apology." "I think we should all go," Hotaru said. "We should go to her and tell her that we were wrong." After a moment, Setsuna nodded. "Very well. But I think we should wait a while. Rei-san is with them now, so we would be speaking with her as well. I don't think we should see her until she's had some time to recover." As reluctant as she was to admit, that made sense to Hotaru. "Poor Rei. Ami told me she and Yuichirou were going to be married." For just a moment, Setsuna's face held an expression of profound grief. "I ... was not aware of that." Hotaru suddenly regretted having said anything. "I had the vision again yesterday," Michiru said. Nobody needed to ask what she meant, or what the implications were. Setsuna had said that if the visions resumed, it meant that the Ancients were still working towards awakening the Seed Crystal, still on a path that could lead to the emergence of the Crystal Palace. "Setsuna, this really stinks," Haruka said. "Even if the ones who attacked Mars are some sort of rogues, it's got to be some indication of what the Ancients are really like. Being isolated the way they are, having those powers, they probably don't think much of outsiders. When push comes to shove, they probably wouldn't give a damn whether any of us lives or dies. For them to have control of the Palace, that's got to be worse than the Palace never existing at all. I think we should try and find out where this Seed Crystal is. We've got to get it out of their hands." "We are very unlikely to do that," Setsuna said. "They have protected it for millennia. If we move against them, all they will do is hunker down, hide in their most ancient places. Then the Palace could truly be lost to us." "To hell with the Palace!" Hotaru shocked herself as much as her companions with her outburst. Feeling badly, she took a moment to calm herself. "I'm sorry, but if the Palace needs to be fed the souls of people and holy places, if that's the only way to create it, then it's better that it never exist at all. It's an evil thing, we're better off without it." Setsuna sighed. "If I didn't think we would need it, I would say the same." Hotaru didn't want to get into an argument when she was this upset, no good could come of it. But she told herself she would hold Setsuna to her promise. When the time was right, they would go to the Princess and ask her forgiveness for their folly. ***** It was the temple where her grandfather's funeral had been, the only place it could properly have been. Her grandfather's oldest and dearest friend had overseen this temple almost as long as he had overseen his own shrine. Though they might disagree on where the Kami and the Buddhas lay in the great scheme of things, they had been closest friends since long before Rei had been born. There was nobody else Rei would have wanted to help set her grandfather on his final, greatest journey. She approached the priest's residence, some small distance from the temple. The monk who answered the door greeted her warmly, recognizing her from her may visits. Even if her black dress of mourning were not a clue, everyone here would be well aware of the loss she had suffered. She was escorted to Hori Ichiro's tea room. The diminutive priest rose to greet her. He smiled warmly as he approached, dispensing with any formalities. "Hello, Rei. How are you feeling?" "Better, thank you." "Please, come sit down." She joined him at the little table, kneeling down on one of the cushions. He poured them tea. "Thank you for coming, Rei." "I'd have come soon even if you hadn't asked," Rei said. "I wanted to thank you again for conducting the service for my grandfather. And for Yuichirou and Miho." "Not at all," Ichiro said. "I had always hoped your grandfather would outlive me, you know. He had a sharp tongue but a warm heart. My many talks with him have been one of the great delights of my life. I can hardly imagine what it will be like without him." Rei smiled. "He felt the same way about you. He told me many times." "It's the young ones I feel worst about, though. Even a short life can be a good one. But it's never easy to accept. I hope you'll keep fond memories of them in your heart, Rei. Then you can never truly lose them." "I'll always remember them." It wasn't the first time he had spoken these words to her. But it still helped. "So you've done settling in?" "Yes." "It was very nice of your friend to take you in. Friends like that are a true blessing, especially in time of grief." A greater blessing that anybody could know, Rei thought. "Usagi is the closest thing to a sister I've ever had. She means more to me that I can say." "I've heard there are already plans to rebuild the shrine." "Yes. My father has been telling me about it." Over the phone, she neglected to mention. They had only met the once, a short, formal meeting. There had been no love lost between he and his father-in-law, so there was no thought of his feeling any grief. It was hard to say what was driving his single-minded pursuit of public funds to restore the shrine. Possibly the exercise of power was an end in itself. It was really too early for Rei to be able to have any feelings on the matter. Ichiro finished off his tea, set down the cup and cleared his throat. "Rei, I must confess I had another reason for asking you here today, besides ensuring myself that you are well. Two acquaintances of mine have informed me that they might have some information regarding the attack on Hikawa shrine." Rei frowned. "Are they from the police?" "No, strictly speaking they are not. However, they are aiding the police in their investigations. They have expressed an interest in meeting you." "I'd be happy to help them in any way I can," Rei said. "But I've already told the police everything I know. I don't know what more I could tell them." "As I said, they appear to have some information which they would like to discuss with you." Rei was beginning to wonder what this was about. "Of course. Tell them I'll meet them whenever they wish." "As a matter of fact, they are waiting in my study." That took Rei by surprise. "Why didn't you tell me? I'd have talked to them right away." "They said they didn't mind waiting. They've requested to meet you in private. It's rather irregular, but I trust these gentlemen implicitly, so I agreed to ask you on their behalf." Somehow this didn't sound right. "I don't understand. Why didn't they just come to the house I was staying at? Aren't they working with the police?" "Yes, in a manner of speaking. Forgive my rudeness, but since they asked to meet you alone, can I ask you to find your way to my study?" Rei knew the way. "Yes, of course." She didn't know quite what to make of this, but her curiosity was piqued. She excused herself, went back out into the hallway and walked to Ichiro's study. The rice paper panel was closed. "I beg your pardon," she called softly but clearly. "I'm Hino Rei." "Please come in," a man's voice called from within. She stood before the door and slid it open. As the priest had said, two men were waiting to see her. They both wore black suits and shaded glasses. One was a very handsome Asian man. Rei had to wonder why he had a Katana sheathed in black lacquer lying at his side. The other was a caucasian man, probably a bit older, with a very cold, grim face. They both were kneeling formally on the bamboo floor. The Asian man bowed. "I am Takada, this is my colleague Smith," he said in a soft but very formal tone. The other man also bowed. "I'm pleased to meet you," Rei said automatically. "Thank you for agreeing to see us," Takada said. "Please sit down." "Thank you." Rei closed the door behind her and knelt down in front of them. But for the sword sitting beside Takada, these two looked so ... ordinary. "His Grace told me you have some information regarding the attack on Hikawa shrine." "We might be able to shed some light on what happened," Takada said gravely. "But first, please allow me to express my sincere condolences." "Thank you." "I never had the pleasure of meeting your grandfather, but his Grace has spoken of him at length. It is a great loss for us all." "Yes," Rei said, again giving just the minimum reply required for politeness. She wondered who was the 'us' Takada referred to, it seemed an odd thing to say. "Let us introduce ourselves properly," Takada continued. "I am agent Takada, acting head of the Japan office of the Hidden branch of the Order." He bowed. "I am agent Smith, acting on behalf of the head office of the Hidden branch of the Order," Smith said in a somewhat harsh, gravelly, voice with a slight accent. He also bowed. Rei blinked. *Do they mean ... ? No, it couldn't be.* "I'm sorry, I was given to understand you represented a police organization," she said carefully. Takada smiled, which in itself surprised Rei. With his perfect deadpan, she had been starting to think of him as a Terminator wannabe. "I understand your confusion," he said, his tone much less stiff now. "You would have had no contact with our branch, working with the Fire Oracles at Hakone. Your Sensei Kozukuri probably never even mentioned us." *He knows about Kozukuri Onesama.* It was an old wound, one whose reopening would have hurt, had her more recent losses not made it seem so distant. Rei wanted to ask him more, but her guard was up more than ever now. "You're correct, my Sensei never mentioned you." She kept her voice just cold enough to indicate she was skeptical about his claimed relation to her former teacher. "I understand," he said, as if acknowledging her unspoken challenge. "By way of credentials, allow me to present this for your inspection." With that, he took the sword at his side by the scabbard, leaned forward and placed it between them with the hilt in easy reach of her. Rei was really beginning to wonder what this fellow was up to. "Forgive me, I don't understand. I don't know anything about swords, and even if I did I don't know what examining your sword will prove." She was having more and more trouble hiding her annoyance at his odd behaviour. "If you will indulge me, I believe you will find this blade of great interest. You need not observe the protocols, I will not take offense." That had been at the back of Rei's mind, in fact. She knew there were very strict protocols involved in examining a proffered blade, and she wasn't familiar with them. If this was really an antique blade the fittings certainly were not original, the scabbard and hilt appeared to be of some modern material, perhaps a plastic or ceramic. After a moment's hesitation, she decided it was easier to indulge him than argue. She took hold of the scabbard just above the hilt and raised the sword before her. When she took the hilt in her other hand, she held onto it for just a heartbeat. She forced herself to keep her shock hidden, to unsheathe the sword as if everything was normal. She went through the motions of examining the blade closely along its entire length. She frowned, despite herself. It had been a long time since she had seen one but ... yes, she was positive. Another shock, almost as bad as the first. At length, she carefully resheathed the sword and placed it between them. Takada took it, placed it back beside him, and watched her silently, his expression expectant but neutral. She glared at him. "As I said, I am no expert, but I've seen Masamune blades in museums. The pattern is very distinctive." He nodded, his expression showing perhaps a hint of surprise and admiration. "You are correct. In fact, it is the last blade he ever made." Rei's expression became even colder. "If the existence if this blade was known, it would be a designated national treasure. I really would like to know how it came to be in your private collection." "I have no collection as such," Takada said, sounding apologetic. "The blade is the property of the Order. As to how it came to be in our possession, I'm afraid that's classified." "Classified?" Rei said, no longer attempting to hide her anger. "What do you mean by that?" "I mean that I myself have no idea how the Order obtained the blade." "How very convenient," Rei said, now openly hostile. "I'm truly sorry, but I really can't shed any light on the blade's origins," Takada said. "Just as I have little idea how the blade came to possess the other properties you noticed." Rei decided there was no more point hiding it. "The blade has a spell cast on it. About all I can tell is that it's deeply hidden and very powerful." "It is a protective spell," Takada explained. "When wielded by one trained in its use, it affords protection against attacks originating from outside the material plane. Attacks from beings such as those who destroyed your shrine." *So he knows about the ESPers, too.* Rei was certain he was withholding things, but he seemed to be openly acknowledging that. She had no indication that what he was telling her was a lie. Maybe he was part of the same Order her Sensei had been in. Maybe he did have something useful to tell her. She decided to throw out a line. "Takada-san, are you trying to tell me that my grandfather and my ... my friends were killed by monsters?" Takada's expression remained neutral. He suddenly did seem to take on the manner of the police she had been expecting to find here in Ichiro's office. "We have strong evidence that the people who attacked your shrine are members of an extended family known as the Ancients. We also believe them to be responsible for the destruction of the other shrines and temples that have taken place in Tokyo these past few weeks. Our knowledge of the Ancients is sketchy. They have lived here in Japan for many generations, but have generally lived somewhat apart from the rest of the population. In the past, they were often mistaken for Ainu, to whom they may even be related. Many members of this family are known to have abilities that might be described as paranormal. Some are very powerful, with the ability to cause large objects to move or spontaneously combust from a distance. After having examined the grounds of your shrine, we have concluded that people with such powers must have been responsible." "I see." There was little Rei could ask without revealing more than what she should. She just waited, seeing if Takada would offer more. "Rei-san," Smith said, getting her attention. "You had told the police that you saw your attackers throwing what looked like something which had been set on fire, and that you saw what appeared to be explosions in the buildings. In light of what my colleague has told you, would you choose to reassess those conclusions?" Rei chose her words very carefully. "I don't fully understand what I saw. But it could be as you say. They could have been using powers such as you describe." Smith nodded. "Thank you for answering honestly." He now sounded even more like a cop doing an interrogation than Takada did. "There are two more points that have come to light. They are from a source which is less reliable than what we would like, so they should be taken with a grain of salt. Nevertheless, keeping that in mind I would like to mention these points, to see if they might mean more to you than they do to us." Rei nodded, genuinely curious now. "Please, go ahead." "The first is that the Ancients appear to have in their possession an artifact known as the Seed Crystal. We believe their attacks on the temples are somehow related to this artifact." He looked expectantly at her. Rei just shook her head. "I've never heard of any such thing." "No matter. The second point is that the Ancients seem to have become aware of somebody who might be watching their activities, may try to interfere with them. They don't seem to know much about them, and unfortunately we know even less. About all we've found out is that they appear to be living or operating in the vicinity of 3-chome Shinjuku." Again, he waited. Rei managed to maintain a neutral expression. "I'm sorry, that means nothing to me." "I see." He suddenly smiled. Rei wouldn't have thought that craggy face could have looked so friendly. "Well, thanks all the same. It was very kind of you to meet with us." Rei found herself smiling, responding to his sudden change in manner. "Not at all." "I feel badly, asking to see you on false pretences," Takada said, his manner now also more relaxed. "We probably haven't told you much more than you already knew. A spiritualist of your calibre must have realized those were no ordinary people." "I had my suspicions," Rei acknowledged. "I wasn't lying when I told the police they may have been using some sort of explosives. It all happened so quickly, I couldn't be sure of anything." Something else occurred to her, and she decided to put out another probe. "The police never asked me this sort of question, they seemed to have no idea the attackers might be ESPers." Takada smiled. "I believe our colleague Saori-san has just about gathered enough evidence that she is willing to accept that conclusion." *Aha.* "As it would happen, Saori is an old friend of my current roommates. She attended their wedding, and my friend tells me she mentioned two Interpol agents who were working with her." In response, Takada reached into his jacket pocket, and flipped open a badge. "As Kozukuri Sensei no doubt told you, the Order must operate under many guises." "I see," Rei said. "Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful you've told me what you know. I'm just wondering why you've told me more than you seem to have told the police." "Because you're ready to hear it," Takada said simply. "There is never any point telling somebody a truth they aren't ready to hear." Rei wasn't sure how she could respond to that. "Do you have some hope of catching these ... Ancients?" "I confess, we are a long way from doing that," Takada said. He reached into his outside jacket pocket, drew a calling card out of a little case and held it out to Rei. "If you have any further questions or information regarding this matter, please don't hesitate to call me anytime." Rei leaned forward and took the card. She examined it. It had the name Takada Hitoshi and what was probably the number of a cellular phone. Nothing more. "Thank you, I will." "Then, we won't take up any more of your time. Thanks again for speaking with us, we'll just see ourselves out." She followed them back to Ichiro's tea room, where they said goodbye to their host. Rei stayed a little longer to talk with Ichiro about a few matters. On her way back to the apartment, she was thinking about the two enigmatic men she had met, about what they had told her. Foremost in her mind was the area of the city Smith had mentioned, 3- chome Shinjuku. She wondered just how the Ancients could have found out what district the Refugees were living in. End Chapter 8 From - Wed Jan 07 23:55:14 1998 Return-Path: Received: from smtp27.bellglobal.com (smtp27.bellglobal.com [204.101.251.55]) by pop50.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id VAA18947 for ; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:06:00 -0500 (EST) Received: from access.mbnet.mb.ca (root@access.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.11]) by smtp27.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id VAA14883 for ; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:05:57 -0500 (EST) Received: from ts8m-11.mbnet.mb.ca (ts8m-11.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.142]) by access.mbnet.mb.ca (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id UAA23126; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 20:05:27 -0600 (CST) Message-ID: <34B45ED8.331A@mbnet.mb.ca> Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 21:06:32 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Win16; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 9] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------6B03D4C225E" X-UIDL: c57fd21f35888ec56476ce860b47fc39 X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: 11858 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------6B03D4C225E Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com --------------6B03D4C225E Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; name="SECRET09.TXT" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SECRET09.TXT" Secrets Chapter 9 - Separate Ways Setsuna couldn't shake the feeling that something was different. It was her first meeting with Daniel since the attack on Hikawa shrine, so perhaps it was just her. Dinner was wonderful, as usual. Daniel treated her to yet another forgotten delicacy of another long lost people, told her tales of ancient kingdoms, some of which she had known only as legend. She had stories of her own to tell, which he eagerly devoured, as much the avid listener as she had known him to be. After just a handful of meetings, they had just barely scratched the surface of their long lives. When they went to sit down in his living room with their drinks, she was certain something was wrong. It wasn't just her. "Setsuna, you haven't mentioned anything about the Ancients' latest attack," he abruptly said. "Latest attack? There have been none, not since the last time we met." "I'm talking about Hikawa shrine." Setsuna frowned. "Isn't that the one that burned down?" "So the papers have been saying," he said with a quick, dismissive gesture. Setsuna hadn't been planning to say anything about the incident to him. She told herself it was because she was protecting the identity of one of her fellow Sailor Senshi. A part of her had to admit she had other motives. "Do you have some reason to believe the Ancients were involved?" "They killed three people," Daniel said, ignoring her question. "They're not just demolishing shrines anymore. Maybe they're after bigger game. Maybe they're after human souls." "Daniel, why are you assuming they are responsible?" Setsuna asked, really wondering why he was drawing that conclusion. "Is there something you're not telling me?" "No. Quite the opposite. You knew they were involved." Setsuna's eyes narrowed. "What makes you think that?" "Does the Princess know about this?" Setsuna was becoming very irritated at having her questions ignored, at being interrogated. She put down her drink and fixed her old friend with a stern look. "Daniel, I think you had better explain." He nodded. "You're right, I owe you an explanation. It's very simple, really. You can't lie to me anymore." "Meaning what?" "Meaning, more precisely, that nobody can lie to me." He leaned back. She could sense him slipping into his role as educator. "It's something I was working on even in the time of the Silver Millennium, something that Queen Serenity took enough of an interest in to grant me my extended lifespan. It involves a certain amount of sorcery, a certain amount of close observation. With centuries of experience, I've been able to perfect the ability. It's saved my life many times, as you might imagine. My own spells are nothing to your own abilities as a Senshi, so I've had to rely on this ability to keep me out of situations where I'd be unable to defend myself." "Are you telling me you can read minds?" Setsuna said. She was surprised to find how fearful she was at the prospect. She was sure she could detect any psionic probe, but still... "No, it's not psionics," Daniel said. "After centuries of taking it for granted, I'm really at a loss to explain it. Best to think of me as a walking lie detector. As far as I know, an infallible one." For just a brief while, Setsuna had been entertaining the thought that he was bluffing, that this was an elaborate scheme to coax more information from her. But all the evidence indicated otherwise. She recalled him being fascinated with the idea, even before they had parted company so long ago. And he really did seem to be able to see through her deception. "Then I guess there's no point in denying it. Yes, the Ancients were responsible for the attack on Hikawa shrine. And for the deaths." "Does the Princess know about this?" "She knows that the ESPers they have been hunting are the same ones who burned down Hikawa shrine." "Is that all?" His tone implied that she was hiding something. Which of course, she was. The Senshi had lost three friends to the attack ... and might yet lose one of their own. "I'm sorry, I can't say more than that." He nodded in acceptance. "Do you plan on moving against the Ancients?" "If the Senshi catch those responsible for the deaths, we will ... deal with them." "That's not what I mean," Daniel said. "Are you going to try and find the cause of this madness? The Seed Crystal?" "I think you already know the answer to that." He regarded her with the same look of judgement she recalled from so long ago. Since the day of their reunion they had managed to set aside their disagreement over the Ancients and the merits of awakening the Seed Crystal. Now, it looked as if all that had suddenly changed. "Then you still wish to see them bring the Crystal Palace into being," he said. "Yes, that is still my hope." "I see." He looked aside for a moment. There was no longer any anger in his expression, just regret. When he met her gaze again, it was with a look of resolve. He had come to some decision. "Setsuna, right now you are the one person in the world with whom I can be completely honest. That means a great deal to me. So I will be honest with you now. I plan on seeking out the Princess and the other Sailor Senshi and telling them all that you have told me. Assuming I can do that, I plan on trying to convince them to find the Seed Crystal and bury it forever, and to help them do that in any way I can." Setsuna shook her head slowly. "Daniel, I can't let you do that." "Then you will have to end my life." Setsuna gasped. Her heart skipped a beat. What shocked her more than his statement was her own reaction to it. She found herself judging whether he was likely to be able to do as he had said. Whether she would have to do as he had suggested. An image came into her mind, of him lying before her, his body broken by the force of the Dead Scream. Setsuna came to her feet. After a moment she brought her shaking under control. She looked down at him with her burning red eyes. She spoke with a voice that was cold as the abyss. "I'm afraid I'll have to leave now." He nodded. Still, there was just the look of profound regret. "I'll see you out." I wasn't even thinking about it, Setsuna told herself over and over as she drove home. I wasn't even considering it. He must know that. That's why he was not afraid. He must surely have known that. ***** "That was great, Rei-chan!" Usagi said, setting her chopsticks down. "I always look forward to the days when you do the cooking." "You done already?" Rei said, glancing at Usagi's empty plate. "I hope you managed to taste that, especially since you had two helpings to our one." "Oh, she tasted it, believe me." Mamoru assured her. "Remember the morning I put too much salt in the miso soup? Who was the first to notice?" "Mamo-chan, I thought you'd had an accident with the salt shaker or something. I just about choked!" "It tasted okay to me," Rei said. "It's amazing how refined your tastes are, seeing how you always eat like a starved wolf." "I do not!" Usagi insisted. "I've just got a weird metabolism, that's all." "Well, it must be infectious, then," Mamoru said. "Ever since you moved in people have been telling me I eat like I'm catching a train." "Right," Rei said. "I think I've gained weight since moving in, just watching her." Usagi glared at them both. "Well, tomorrow I'm doing the cooking, so you'd better be nice to me." "An idle threat," Rei said. "You have to eat the same thing we do, you and your refined tastebuds." Usagi displayed her refined tastebuds, prompting Rei to do likewise. Mamoru sighed. "Are we ready for tea?" "Oh, right!" Usagi said. Her face suddenly brightened. "We can use that new tea set Rei got for us! Mamo-chan, we got it at this wonderful little shop she'd never taken me to before ..." While she gave Mamoru a blow-by-blow account of today's shopping trip, Rei took the opportunity to start clearing away the dishes. The cook had cleanup detail, as per previous agreement. As she walked into the kitchen, Rei let her lips curl into the fond smile she had been holding back. It was hard to believe that just three short weeks ago her life had been an utter ruin, that she had been closer to despair than she had ever been before. Hard to believe it was just that recently Usagi had to hold her each night, let her cry herself to sleep, soothe her when she would wake up screaming. Where Usagi had been a soft shoulder to cry on, Mamoru had been a rock to anchor herself against. It had been his gentle insistence that had prompted Rei to enter fully into their lives. She helped them with the shopping and the chores. She went with them to dinner, to movies, to visit Usagi's family. She helped Usagi with her homework, even did some research for one of Mamoru's articles. She went with them to visit Makoto, to take turns reading to her. In every way, they made her feel as if she had always been here, as if she belonged here as much as they did. The only thing that kept it from being utterly perfect was the certain knowledge that one day it must end. And of course, their anxiety over their stricken friend, still lying in a coma. There were little things Rei did to assure herself that she was not getting too comfortable, that she was not tempted to make this a permanent arrangement. She would keep her friends informed of the plans to rebuild the shrine, assure them that she intended to move back there one day. A couple of times already she had found some excuse or other to stay at Makoto's apartment for a night, make sure the place was being maintained, ready for Makoto's return. They accepted her excuses, but it was understood this was to give the newlyweds a chance for some privacy. With those compromises in place, they had all become very happy with the arrangement. Rei just thought of herself as being in a holding pattern, sharing an interlude with her dear friends until she could land again, resume her own life. On Usagi's insistence, Rei deferred doing the dishes and went to make tea with the new set Usagi had been enthusing over. It was identical to the set that had been destroyed in the fire ... not the old one that was worth half the gross domestic product, but the one she would always use when her friends visited. She had given it to them as a memento, a reminder of the time they took her grief and washed it away, turned it into a happy interlude shared by the three of them. Over tea they talked about the shrine. After the police were done, various experts had descended on the place in hopes of salvaging as many of the priceless artifacts as they could. In the past few days Rei had spent some time helping in these efforts. She had been astonished at just how much had actually survived. Mostly things that wouldn't burn, of course. When the new shrine building was erected, it would hold many of the holy relics that the original building had. And of course it would still have its soul. The ESPers had not taken that. Rei had just managed to get a grumbling Usagi to crack open her books and continue writing her psych essay when the doorbell rang. Not wanting to give Usagi a chance at a distraction, Rei firmly pushed her back down into her seat and went to answer the door herself. Setsuna smiled warmly. "Good evening, Rei-san." "Good evening," Rei said. Haruka, Michiru and Hotaru stood behind Setsuna in the hallway. Rei's mind was suddenly cast back to the last time she had seen them all, at her grandfather's funeral. Still devastated by her loss, she had at least had the presence of mind to hide her feelings of resentment and betrayal, to make it clear that she was laying no blame. At least she hoped she had made that clear. "I'm sorry for dropping in unexpectedly like this," Setsuna continued. "There's something we need to discuss with you and the Prince and Princess. I hope we haven't caught you at a bad time." "No, not at all," Rei said. There was a bit more life in her voice now, as she recovered from the surprise of seeing them all there. They all looked more or less relaxed, so there was obviously no emergency. But Rei felt hints of tension. They were all nervous about something. "Please come in." As they all entered, Usagi came walking down the hall. She smiled as she saw who it was. "I thought I heard your voice, Setsuna-san. Hi everyone!" she waved, and the others all greeted her all at once. "What brings you out here all of a sudden?" Usagi asked. Rei put a hand on her shoulder. "Usagi-chan, why don't you ask them that when they've all sat down?" she said gently. "It's a bit cramped for them here." Usagi blushed. "Oh, right." The entranceway in front of the step up was pretty crowded for four. "Sorry, please come in." She turned around. "Mamo-chan, its Setsuna and the others! Can you put my books away?" "Just close them and leave them on the table," Rei called out. She crossed her arms and smiled at Usagi. "She'll be using them again just as soon as our guests have left." Usagi sniffed, muttered something about just trying to make the place look presentable. "Sounds like you're really whipping our Princess into shape," Haruka said as she stepped up into the hallway. "I was afraid married life would make her soft." Rei winked, finding herself responding to Haruka's friendly manner. "Not while I'm around." She had been afraid they would be awkward around her, and was relieved to see they were not. As Haruka walked past them to greet Mamoru, Hotaru stepped up to Rei and took her hand. "You're looking much better, Rei-san," she said softly. "I'm feeling a lot better," Rei said, squeezing her hand back. "These two have been taking really good care of me." "I think we just missed each other last week," Michiru said, putting a hand on Hotaru's shoulder and smiling at Rei. "When we went to visit Makoto-san, the nurse told us she had just been visited by a very pretty young lady with purple eyes." She winked. "I think the nurse has a crush on you." "I didn't know you had visited her," Rei said, having been wondering about that recently. "That was very sweet of you." "Let's not stand around," Usagi said, waving her guests into the living room. "Hi everyone," Mamoru said, interrupting his conversation with Haruka. They all waved and greeted him. "Rei, why don't we make some more tea?" Usagi suggested. "That won't be necessary," Setsuna said, raising her hand and getting everyone's attention. "We won't be long, but I do have something important to tell you." Her tone immediately lifted the level of tension in the room. Rei had been right, they were nervous about something. "Okay," Usagi said, looking just a bit puzzled and concerned. She put her arm around Rei and steered her to the middle seat of the couch, where Rei sat down between Usagi and Mamoru. That had become her normal place, since the days when they had still been working to ease her through her grief. Setsuna took a spot in the middle of the opposite couch, flanked by Haruka and Michiru. Hotaru took the chair at the end of the coffee table. Everyone was looking to Setsuna to break the silence that descended on the room. The Guardian of Time locked eyes with Rei, astonished her with the intensity of the pain that suddenly showed in her expression. "Rei, what I have to say is mostly for you. Not so long ago I tried to convince you that you should not pursue those creatures who were demolishing this city's holy sites. I said that they did not pose enough of a threat to merit our attention. I could not have been more utterly wrong. You and the others who came to harm have paid the price of my folly. I have come to beg your forgiveness." Something was wrong. She was hiding something, they all were. But Rei didn't have time to think about that. They still deserved an answer. "Setsuna, you did what you thought was right." She looked around at the other Senshi. "You all did. You couldn't have know what would happen. Of course I can forgive you." Setsuna's expression did not change. "Rei, the fact is I should have known what would happen. From the beginning I suspected who these people really were. Now I know. They are an ancient group of paranormals whose ancestors I have had contact with in the distant past. I already knew how dangerous they could be, what they were capable of." "Setsuna, why didn't you tell us?" Usagi asked. Her question was an innocent one, asked with the expectation that there must have been a good reason. "I believed that what they were taking from the holy sites was something needed for their survival, and that once they were done they would stop. I thought the least dangerous course was to let the attacks run their course, let the attackers go back from whence they came. I was wrong. Now, it appears they are seeking human souls, and we are all in danger." While Setsuna was addressing herself to Usagi, Rei glanced at the other Senshi. They were hiding it well, but they were all very ill at ease. Especially Hotaru. Against her will, Rei found herself recalling her strange meeting with the two members of the Order, the things they told her. A sudden feeling of dread gripped her, she was almost nauseous. She hadn't even allowed herself to think it ... Usagi would have been devastated to know she could even consider such a thing. She still refused to believe it. But she had to find out. "Setsuna, why would they suddenly need spiritual energy from holy places?" Rei asked abruptly. Setsuna seemed taken aback by the question. "I can only speculate. They could be using it as healing energy to treat or rejuvenate one of their number. I have known them to be able to make use of such energy in the past." "Would it have anything to do with the Seed Crystal?" Setsuna's expression did not change. But Rei heard sharp intakes of breath from the others. And Setsuna had heard it too. After a moment, Rei could see it in her face. She knew she had been caught in Rei's trap. "Seed Crystal?" Mamoru asked. "What's that?" "I think you'd better ask Setsuna," Rei said, her gaze not wavering from Setsuna's eyes. They stared at each other in silence. "Setsuna, I think you should tell them," Hotaru said. Setsuna glanced at the young girl. Her expression showed no anger, just disapproval and disappointment. She sighed. "Very well." She cast her gaze across the three people seated opposite her, but as she spoke she addressed herself mainly to Rei, as if she were the one owed an explanation. "The people who have been attacking the shrines are called the Ancients. For some years now one of them has been an acquaintance of mine. She has kept this relationship secret from her people just as I have kept it from you. Shortly after these attacks began, she informed me that a group of Ancients, including her son, was responsible for these attacks. I don't know where you heard of the Seed Crystal, but all I have been able to learn about it is that it is a magical artifact that probably dates from the time of the Silver Millennium." Again, there were indications of surprise from the others. It looked like they hadn't heard that part before. "So it does have to do with this crystal," Rei said. "Yes. By feeding this energy to the crystal, they hope to turn it to its true form, which is the Crystal Palace." "My God ..." Mamoru breathed. He'd obviously hit upon what Setsuna meant just as quickly as Rei had. Usagi leaned forward, looking over at Mamoru, frowning in puzzlement. "Crystal Palace? You don't mean ... ?" "Crystal Tokyo," Rei said, glaring at Setsuna. "That's what this is all about. You want them to make the Crystal Palace for us. You want it now, so that you can put Usagi on the throne." "What?" It sounded like this had all sunk in for Usagi too. "Setsuna, is this true?" "That's part of the truth," Setsuna said. "The part you can't hide anymore," Rei said, no longer caring how that sounded. Setsuna ignored her. "Princess, I have done this for a reason. If the Ancients do not bring the Palace into being now, it may never happen. And the Palace may be all we have to protect us in the coming Dark Age." "What dark age?" Usagi said, sounding almost frantic. "What are you talking about?" "Is there something else you haven't told us?" Mamoru asked. His voice was level, but cold. "Nothing you can't see for yourself," Setsuna answered. "This civilization is on the verge of collapse. It may happen quickly or slowly, but we are likely to be facing a new age of barbarism. The power provided by the Palace may be the only thing that will allow us to survive that age, and to build a new civilization in its wake." "So you've been helping the Ancients?" Rei asked, already knowing the answer, dreading it. "I've been trying to see that they are not interfered with." "Is that why you told them about the refugees living in 3-chome Shinjuku?" Setsuna no longer looked surprised. "You seem to be remarkably well informed, Rei-san," she said softly. "Oh My God!" Usagi said, her hands shooting up to cover her mouth for just a moment. "Setsuna, you didn't tell them where Jeneth lives, did you?" "Only the district," Setsuna said. "So that they could better block her aura vision." Usagi shook her head, shocked beyond words. "Setsuna, how could you?" she breathed. "Pluto, you had no right to do that," Mamoru said. His tone matched the cold formality of his use of her title. "You may have reasons for not helping us, but to actually aid one of our enemies is unforgivable." "Setsuna," Usagi said. Everyone turned to her. She looked wounded. "Setsuna ... after all this time, you still don't trust me, do you?" Setsuna's lip quivered. She was plainly holding back intense emotion. "Princess, I'm sorry, but I knew you would try to stop them. I couldn't-" "Of course I would try and stop them!" Usagi shouted. "What they're doing is wrong! It doesn't matter why they're doing it, it doesn't matter about the Palace! It's wrong!" She thrust her arm out, pointing at Hotaru, but still railing on Setsuna. "Just like not giving Hotaru the Holy Grail would have been wrong! Just like letting her *die* would have been wrong!" Setsuna had gotten control of herself again. Her old calm, inscrutable expression had returned. "Princess, I'm sorry but you don't understand. It's the same as before, you don't understand the ultimate risk of doing what only looks like the proper thing." Rei shot to her feet. "How .... dare ... you." Nobody spoke. Setsuna's poker face wavered. The warrior in Rei's soul smelled the signs of fear. Setsuna's mouth opened to speak. "Rei-" "Get up." After a moment, Setsuna did as Rei had ordered. Rei's voice was low and even. "How dare you talk to your Queen that way. You will apologize to her immediately." Setsuna held her ground. "No Mars, I will not. Not until I know she understands what needs to be done." Rei's arm shot straight out at her target, too fast to see. It could only have been blind instinct that allowed Setsuna to move her own arm up, to deflect the blow that would have crushed her windpipe. There were cries of alarm. Everybody was on their feet in an instant. Rei felt both her arms being seized. "Who the hell are you to tell her she doesn't understand?" Rei shouted at the top of her lungs. The only thing stopping her from following up on her attack was that she was being held by the two people in the world she could never, ever raise a hand against. "Rei, stop it," Usagi said as gently as she could. Rei ignored her. "How many times does Usagi have to save all our lives before you'll finally get it?" She shouted. "She *knows* what's right, knows it better than you ever did! You're the one who doesn't understand!" Setsuna stared at her with wide eyes, panting, her arm still held up in the same defensive position. It looked like she understood that her long life had very nearly come to an end right here. Rei's vision blurred. She clenched her eyes shut. No. She absolutely would not cry, not in front of that walking garbage. The effort of holding back her frustrated rage was too much. Her legs threatened to give out. Mamoru and Usagi eased her down onto the couch, still keeping a firm grip on her. She shook violently, refusing to give in. She would not shed one tear, not one. "Setsuna, I think that you had all better leave right now." Usagi's tone was firm, but calm and more than a little apologetic. How could she, Rei wondered. How could she apologize to that filth? But Rei already knew the answer. It was because she was Usagi. She was vaguely aware of people walking away. Then Hotaru's soft voice, right in front of her. "Usagi-" "Please, Hotaru. Not now." Again, firm, but imploring. After a moment, footsteps leading away again. A few more moments, and a door closing. They were gone. The ones who had killed her three loved ones were gone. The ones who had killed the man who had raised her, and the man who had made love to her, and the girl who had idolized her, they were gone now. She let the tears fall. The two of them held her more gently now, saying nothing. After a few minutes, she found a voice again. "Damn them," she rasped, still shaking uncontrollably. "Damn them .... damn them forever ... damn them to hell ... damn them." That night, Usagi had to hold her for a very long time before she could drift into a fretful sleep. ***** **Should you really be doing that, Senpai?** Shoji hadn't heard Yui approach. His eyes were clenched tight and he was focused on pulling himself up to the bar just one more time. His arms quivered, threatened to give out. But he managed to touch his chin to the bar. He let go, allowed himself to drop down onto the mat. He opened his eyes, saw Yui standing in front of him, looking very worried. He grinned at her, panting, flexing his arms. **Exercise is the best thing. It hurts a little less each time.** **Can I see it?** It wouldn't look any different than it had this morning. But he indulged her, as he always did. **Sure.** He pulled his sweat-stained T- shirt over his head as he walked over to the bench that held his freeweights. He tossed the shirt across the bench and sat down. Yui bent over him and had a look at the where the arrow had hit him a month ago. There was no scarring to speak of anymore, so Shoji no longer bothered putting anything on it. **It still hurts?** she asked. **I just feel it a bit when I work out. Doesn't exactly hurt anymore.** **I still think you should have seen a doctor.** **We talked about that. The papers even said one of us was hit with an arrow. Any doctor would get suspicious if he had read that.** He pulled her close, and she wrapped her arms around him in response, tucking his head under her chin. **Besides, 'Tomi fixed me up well enough.** **Yeah. I'm glad she's with us, but I still feel bad about getting her in trouble.** Shoji would have argued that they weren't exactly in trouble anymore. At least as long as they avoided any place they were likely to meet other Ancients. Hitomi hadn't been directly involved, but being a close friend of Yui she would have been sought out, would have been asked questions, maybe under a mind probe. They would know she had given her approval to the attack. The only reason she hadn't been there is they thought it would be a walk in the park. They hadn't even been planning on taking Akechi along, but he had insisted, probably trying to make sure they didn't do anything he would consider too risky. He had proven less than reliable at watching their backs, but had come through in the end, redeemed himself by dropping that chick in the sailor suit. ** 'Tomi doesn't mind,** he said. **Probably thinks this is fun.** He tickled her. **Isn't this fun?** She giggled. **Sure, it's like a permanent vacation.** Since she and Hitomi had perfected their different ways of obtaining the outsiders' currency, their whole lives had been a permanent vacation. But Shoji knew what she meant. They all considered this house to be their vacation spot. Shoji had obtained it a couple of years ago and only told Yui, his best friend and Yui's best friend, swearing them all to secrecy. As well as their private little vacation spot, it was their insurance. A bolthole, if they ever needed one. As it turned out, they most definitely had needed a bolthole. **And we can still go back to Tokyo any time we like, so it really isn't much different,** Shoji said. Their house was in the rolling hills of Chiba district, just across the bay from Tokyo, so it was a short drive. They still avoided any obvious places, just in case grandma Himiko had a really serious manhunt going. Yui let go of him and went to sit down on the bench beside him. She looked troubled again. **Senpai, we haven't really talked about what we're going to do next.** **Well, I've been giving that some thought,** Shoji said. He'd had plenty of time to think while he healed. **I figure what you said before was right. The Sailor Senshi are the ones with the ancient souls, the ones the Seed Crystal is looking for.** Yui frowned. **Yeah, so?** **So, there are supposed to be five of them. Well, maybe four now. If we found one, we can find another one.** **They're really strong,** Yui said, fear showing on her face and in her sending. **It was really hard trying to pull her life force out, almost like pulling it out of a temple. And their spells nearly went through my shield.** **We just approached them all wrong,** Shoji said. **Now that we know how strong they are, we just have to make sure we catch them by surprise. When we find another one, we wait until she's out somewhere alone, let Akechi stun her and let you teleport her somewhere we can take her life force in peace.** Yui shook her head. **Senpai, I really don't want to do this anymore. What do we need that stupid Palace for anyway?** **Haven't you been watching the news, Yui-chan?** She shook her head. **Trying to read English captions is a pain. That's why I watch cartoons. It doesn't matter what they're saying.** **There are so many wars now, CNN has live reports just about 24 hours a day and they still can't cover much of it. It's almost routine now. But this morning sure wasn't routine. They dropped a nuke in China just a few hours ago.** **They've used nukes before.** Which was true. Both sides in the civil war had used nuclear weapons several times already. **Yeah, but this one was a civilian target,** Shoji said. **A whole city. Poof, gone. More dead than at Hiroshima. The world is becoming a scary place, Yui. If it all falls apart, we may need that Palace. You've seen it in the vision, felt its power. Its probably indestructible. The ultimate fallout shelter.** **But grandma Himiko has the Seed Crystal.** Meaning she would never let them near it, Yui didn't need to add. **She has the Seed Crystal,** Shoji said. **But we may be able to bring her the means to turn it into the Crystal Palace. She'd have to take us back into the fold for that.** And Shoji had other ideas for how to get around that little problem. But now was not the time. **Maybe Kaori-mama would help us if we told her we're looking for the Senshi.** **I doubt that,** Shoji said. He suspected that his mother had some information on the Senshi, and probably those aliens too. The way she had helped him avoid them, the way she had known about the battle at Hikawa shrine, she had to know something. He had been considering trying to contact her, but the risk was too great. **So are you going to talk to some of the black sheep again?** Yui asked. **Sort of. We might try something a bit different, this time.** **Like what?** Shoji smiled. **'Tomi has an interesting idea. Let's go talk to her.** ***** For the first time in his life, Mamoru felt like he really wanted to kill somebody. It had all been going so well. Rei had put the catastrophe behind her, had managed to pick herself up again. It had looked like their elusive enemies were scared off, maybe for good. The only thing hanging over their heads was poor Makoto, and Usagi pretty much had everybody convinced it was just a matter of time before she was back among them. Mamoru was starting to believe that they could all put their lives back in order again. Then yesterday it had all fallen to pieces again. Treason had done its worst. Her worst. Mamoru really felt like he wanted to kill somebody. A certain somebody. But life went on, and it being his turn today he was busy in the kitchen, putting away the dishes and the dinner leftovers. Usagi and Rei were sitting in the living room. He could barely hear their murmured conversation. Usagi had stayed here with her all day today. Rei had been asleep when Mamoru got back from talking with magazine editors he was working with. When she woke up, she certainly had been in much better shape than the previous night. Usagi had worked her magic again. The doorbell rang. "I'll get it," Mamoru called. He wiped his hands dry on a towel hanging over the counter and went to answer the door. It was their expected guests. "Hi everyone, come on in." "Thanks," Minako said. She stepped in, and Ami followed, closing the door behind her. They each had one of the cats on their shoulder. "Mamoru, how is Rei doing?" Ami asked very quietly. She and Minako both looked worried. Usagi had already told them the basics of what had happened last night, including Rei's reaction. "She's a lot better now," Mamoru assured her. "Come on, I'm sure she'll be glad to see you." She was. Rei got a long hug from Minako, then from Ami. "You're not limping anymore," Rei observed. "I'm pretty much back to normal," Ami said. "My speed swimming is back up to par too." Under normal circumstances, she probably would have commented that it was time to challenge Michiru to a race again. But these were not normal circumstances. "Did you visit Mako-chan today?" Usagi asked. "Yes," Ami answered. "She's still doing fine." Which was her way of saying there was no change in her condition. "That reminds me." She opened up her purse and pulled out a pocketbook. "This is what I've been reading her. Did you want to take it when you go tomorrow?" "Sure." Usagi took the book and looked at the cover. Her face fell. "Oh, ick. The World Economic Crisis? Ami, we're supposed to be helping her wake up, not helping put her to sleep." "I think it's shock therapy," Minako said. "Mako-chan will get so sick of this book she'll sit up and tell Ami to shut up and leave her in peace." "It'll put *me* to sleep," Usagi muttered, looking dubiously at the book. "Well why don't you stick with what you were reading before?" Ami suggested. "Give her a variety." "That sounds like a good idea," Usagi said with more than a little relief, returning the book to Ami. Mamoru found himself smiling. Usagi was not letting any of them even contemplate the possibility of Makoto not waking up. Even Ami, with her cold logic and her knowledge of Makoto's real chances was being swept along with Usagi's unshakable faith. They all sat down, and the cats jumped up onto the table. Luna walked over near Rei. Everybody went silent, having taken this as a signal that it was time for the discussion they had all come here for. "Rei, I have to be honest with you," Luna said. "After Minako explained what Usagi had told her, I used her communicator to contact Setsuna." "Behind my back, no less," Minako muttered. The black cat turned her head and gave Minako a cross look. Minako returned it unflinchingly, but said nothing more. Luna turned back to Rei. "According to her, you tried to kill her last night." "I'll wager that's the only truthful statement she made," Rei said. "And you have nothing more to say about that?" Luna asked. "Only that I'm not proud of what I did. I brought myself down to her level. I convinced myself that I was justified in killing her." "No you didn't," Usagi said sternly. "Luna, she didn't mean to do that, she was just angry. You can't blame her, after what Setsuna did." Mamoru felt it inappropriate to add that he had felt like killing her himself. "Usagi, I'm not trying to judge anybody," Luna said, more gently now. "Now that you've all come of age, it's no longer my place to judge any of you. I was only trying to clear the air, to find out where we stand, so that I would know how to advise you." "How to advise us on what?" Ami asked. "On how to deal with a death vendetta between two of the Sailor Senshi." Nobody spoke for a few moments. Luna turned to face Rei again. "If Pluto wants to kill me, she's welcome to try," Rei said. "Otherwise, we don't have a problem." "I see. I'm sorry Rei, but you know I had to ask." "Yes, Luna, I know." She reached forward and gently smoothed down the fur on Luna's head. "As usual, you're just looking out for Usagi. How could I fault you for that?" "Just for the record," Artemis said, "After she talked to Setsuna, Luna described to me in great detail just what she would like to see happen to that traitorous liar. It wasn't anything I'd care to repeat among you youngsters." "There you go treating us like kids again," Minako said. "Probably won't be any different when we're all a thousand years old." "Oh, I don't know, I figure you'll have started to grow up by then." "Enough, you two," Luna said. "Crystal Tokyo is a long ways off, we have more immediate concerns." "Crystal Tokyo is what this is all about," Minako said. "Setsuna has her big plan for kick-starting her new world order. So what are we going to do about it?" "I think we need to find these Ancients she told us about," Usagi said. "Right, they need to be stopped," Minako said. Usagi shook her head. "No, that's not what I mean. Yes, we have to find the ones who attacked Rei, make sure they can't hurt anybody else. But we also need to see if they can help Mako-chan." "Help her?" Minako asked. "They're the ones who tried to kill her!" "Usagi has a good point," Ami said. "Even if we have to force them, the Ancients may be able to tell us something that will help Mako-chan." "But we have no idea where or how to look for them," Mamoru reminded her. "We can ask Setsuna," Minako said. She looked around at the incredulous stares she was getting. "Well whatever she's done she's still a Sailor Senshi and she still owes allegiance to the Princess. If she doesn't want to tell us what we want to know, we make her tell us whether she likes it or not." "You can't force somebody to tell the truth," Rei said. "Setsuna made her feelings clear last night. She doesn't trust any of us. She won't let us jeopardize her master plan. If we go to her, we'll just get her usual web of half-truths that won't lead us anywhere." "Then we're pretty much stuck," Minako said. "She's about our only lead." "Jeneth can still detect them when they attack," Usagi reminded her. Minako sighed. "Usagi, no offense intended to Jeneth, she's really putting everything she's got into this. They all are. But that hasn't done us any good so far, we'll always be one step behind the Ancients. No doubt we have Pluto to thank for that, she's obviously helped them somehow." "We may have another lead," Rei said. "The two members of the Order I met with may know more." "Usagi mentioned them," Ami said. "Aren't they the ones who told you about the Ancients?" "Yes. They mentioned the Seed Crystal, and they correctly identified the district where the Refugees are living. I couldn't tell them that, of course. I haven't contacted them since, perhaps it's time I did." "I've really got to wonder about them, though," Mamoru said. "I mean, mister Takada and mister Smith? Those have got to be assumed names." "Yes, they're using false identities," Rei said. "They definitely know about the Order, I'm quite sure they're not lying about being a part of it." "What do you think they could tell you?" Ami asked. Rei smiled, seeing the worry in Ami's face, knowing the question she was really asking. "Don't worry Ami, I'm not proposing to transform in front of them and ask to form an alliance. In fact, I'm not sure how I should approach them. We may need to give some thought to that." "We can't tell them about Jeneth and the others," Usagi said. She looked around at the blank stares she was getting. "Well, this Order is like an Earth defense command right? They may think the Refugees are some sort of alien invaders." Rei chuckled. She patted Usagi's knee. "Usagi, you're priceless. But I guess you're right, we'll have to be careful what we tell them." The doorbell rang. "I'll get it," Usagi said. She got up and walked to the door. "You've never said much about the Order," Mamoru said. "That's because I don't know much," Rei said. "The only member I ever knew well was my Sensei. She never told me much other than training me as a Fire Oracle and telling me the Order had many others like me around the world. After she died, I had some contact with them. I've even thought about joining, but somehow that just never happened." "They've asked you?" Mamoru asked. "A couple of times. My maternal grandmother was a member. My mother probably would have been too, but she had a weak constitution and really couldn't take the strain of doing fire readings." Mamoru was about to ask more, but noticed Usagi returning to the room. She was not alone. Everyone else looked up, obviously as surprised as he was. Usagi smiled. "Look who's come to visit," she said gently, her arm wrapped around her guest's shoulders. Hotaru stood stiffly, her eyes downcast. She looked up at them and forced a smile. "Hello." "Come sit down," Usagi said, trying to tug her along. "Usagi ..." Hotaru put a hand over Usagi's. Usagi stopped, seeing the stricken, imploring look in Hotaru's face. She took a step back, just holding Hotaru's hand now. "Hotaru, what's wrong?" "Usagi, I have no right to expect you to forgive me or to trust me, so I won't even ask." She raised a hand and shook her head, stopping Usagi's obvious intent to object. "I betrayed you, just like they did. I can't ask you to just forget that." She glanced over at the others, her eyes lingering on Rei. "I can't ask any of you to forget that." As she spoke her tone became more urgent, almost desperate. She turned back to Usagi. "I just want to help you. I don't expect it to change how you feel about me or the rest of us. Even if you still hate me I'll understand. But I want to help you hunt down the Ancients. It was wrong for me not to fight them, not to protect the people they were hurting. I'll do anything, just let me-" "Hush." Usagi put a finger up just a centimetre from Hotaru's lips, stopping her before she could work herself into a frenzy. She ran her hand lightly over Hotaru's straight black hair, looking so much like a mother comforting her child. "Hotaru, you didn't even need to ask. You're always welcome, you know that." Hotaru appeared to be searching for words, thinking she needed to say more, unable to believe it could really be that simple. Rei stood up, getting Hotaru's attention. She smiled and gestured to the empty seat opposite her. "Hotaru, why don't you sit down and we'll talk about what we need to do." Hotaru took a step toward her. "Rei-san, I-" "No." Rei raised a hand, shook her head. "No blame. We're all following our Princess now, that's all that matters." The anxiety on Hotaru's expression faded away. She just smiled, not even bothering to try and find words. At a gentle prod from Usagi, she went to sit down. Mamoru caught Usagi and Rei exchange a glance. Usagi smiled and winked at her. There was more than gratitude in her expression, there was also pride. Mamoru felt it as well. He could only imagine how difficult it was for Rei, to at least try and forgive. They spent a while bringing Hotaru up to speed on what they had been talking about. She was able to pass on a few more things that Setsuna had told her about the Ancients. They began to make their plans. ***** It was getting rather cold to be lunching outside. Still, it was an unusually warm day for November, and Ami had never been bothered much by cold. So she sat in the deserted outdoor section of the campus cafeteria, her jacket and the noonday sun keeping her more or less comfortable. It was her normal lunch, which was to say she held the sandwich she was eating in one hand while she flipped through a textbook with her other hand. She wasn't exactly behind on her work, but she wasn't as far ahead as she normally liked to be. She had spent two days in a hospital, then three more at Jeneth's apartment, being tended by her and by Hotaru. They had fixed her up to the point where she could get around, albeit painfully, could go back to school again. Losing that many days on her accelerated program could have been disastrous, but her professors were all cutting her the slack she needed. Best of all, Ryou had been doing everything he could to nurse her back to health. Ami smiled as she thought about how grateful she should be for that. Were it not for him, Minako probably would have insisted on taking the role of nurse angel. Her heart was in the right place, but she seemed to be under a curse that corrupted any domestic chores she tried to do. She could make a whole house uninhabitable in minutes, and had done so on more than one occasion. In her public life she really played up being a walking disaster area, her fans thought it was all very cute. Of course, none of them had ever experienced Minako's health care from hell. Ami focused on her reading again. As usual, she finished her sandwich and washed it down with her canned drink with no conscious thought, hardly taking her eyes off her book. As usual, when somebody approached her she wasn't aware of it until they were right on top of her. The presence did not register on her until it dawned upon her that somebody had been standing nearby for about a minute. She looked up. Setsuna stood there, calmly watching her, her hands in the pockets of her long autumn coat. "May I sit down?" she asked softly. Ami averted her eyes, knowing full well what must be showing on her face. She nodded curtly. After a moment, Setsuna moved over and sat across the little round table from Ami. Ami marked her place in the book and closed it. She still didn't look at Setsuna. It was a few moments before she began speaking. She didn't bother trying to mask the bitterness in her voice. "To know the good is to do the good. Ever since I was old enough to understand what that meant, I believed it. I really believed that the more I knew, the more likely I would always do the right thing. I thought that wisdom and virtue were one." They sat in silence for a while. There was no response. "Setsuna, what do you want?" "I'd like you to tell me what you think I should do to make things right again." Ami met Setsuna's gaze. "Go to Usagi. All of you. Tell her that you were wrong. Tell her everything you know about our enemy. Help us fight them." "Do you really think that would make things right?" "I don't know. Maybe it won't fix anything. Maybe she'll never trust you again. You could hardly blame her. You came to her full of apologies but still weaving your same web of half-truths. You made it pretty clear you don't think she's capable of leading us. I don't know if you can ever undo that. All I know is you have to try." "But do you think that would make things right?" Ami perceived she was asking a different question now, had some idea what she was getting at. "All I know is, we need to stop the Ancients from hurting anybody else. I don't know what will happen after that. If you know more, why don't you enlighten me?" Her question was a challenge, not sarcasm. "I can tell you this. If you succeed in stopping the Ancients from taking any more life force, be they from holy sites or from people, you may very well prevent them from bringing the Crystal Palace into being. That may mean that we have no future in Crystal Tokyo. It may mean we have no future at all." "That's a lot of theorizing," Ami challenged. "Yes, it is. In the absence of more facts, all I can do is play the odds. If you move against the Ancients, the odds of our having a future goes down." Ami shook her head. "I'm sorry Setsuna, I won't play dice with people's lives. What they're doing is wrong and we have to stop it." Setsuna's red eyes narrowed ever so slightly. Her expression darkened. "Ami, tell me something. Do you regret having destroyed the last remnants of the Dark Kingdom? Do you regret having killed innocents to ensure our world's safety?" Memories long beaten down suddenly came surging back. Images of grey- skinned men and women screaming and dying at her hand. Images of a young boy, smiling in gratitude at his killers as he slowly faded away. Ami's hand balled up into a fist. She suppressed her shaking, started breathing evenly again. "Setsuna ... damn you." "Ami, I knew how much that would hurt." Her sympathetic manner did absolutely nothing to abate Ami's anger. "Hate me if you must. Just realize that you are faced with the same decision now as you were then." Ami shook her head. "They attacked my friend, they slaughtered her loved ones. I can't let that go unpunished." "Then punish them if you must. But-" "No," Ami said, cutting her off with a gesture. "No compromises. If we defeat the ones who attacked Rei and others come out of the woodwork to continue their dirty work, then we'll fight them too. If the only way to stop them is to kill them all and destroy this Seed Crystal of theirs then so be it. Nobody has the right to steal human souls, whatever the reason." Setsuna looked unmoved. "You've made your decision." "I have." After a moment Setsuna got up. "Then I'll be leaving, I'm sure you've got work to catch up on." She walked around the table and looked down at Ami. "Ami, I hope we can still stay in touch." "If you're in danger and have need of us, we're always ready to help. That hasn't changed." Setsuna shook her head. "You know that's not what I mean," she said softly. "Yes, I know." Setsuna hesitantly reached out a hand. "Ami-" "Setsuna, please don't touch me." Her voice was colder than any ice storm Mercury had ever unleashed. Setsuna froze, her hand just centimetres away. She looked like she had just been stabbed. After a moment, she stood straight again. Now there were only hints of the shock and pain her face had shown. "I see." She averted her eyes. "Goodbye, Ami." "Goodbye." Ami watched her go. Then she immersed herself in the cold hard facts of membrane physiology until it was time for her next class. She got up and told herself it really was time to start eating lunch inside. It was becoming harder to read. Obviously the cold was making her eyes water. Obviously. ***** Michiru bowed yet again, and the cries of 'Encore!' went on, punctuating the thundering applause. Ever her own harshest critic, even Michiru had to acknowledge that she had outdone herself tonight. She had played with an intensity that astonished her, making the violin cry out with joy and anguish and passion. She could see it in their faces, how her own roiling, confused emotions had poured out, filling the hall, resonating with all who listened. She felt spent, felt she had nothing more to give. And she was anxious to be home, to be with her sisters. But she couldn't leave them like this. One last piece. She brought the violin back up into position. The noise level gradually dropped, and people took their seats again, watching her eagerly. She began to play. It was something quite different, a new piece she had only just heard at a concert some weeks ago during her tour of the Black Sea. It was by an obscure but brilliant Russian composer, and she had instantly fallen in love with the piece. Despite constant practice she was still unsure about a public performance, but decided to risk it. When she had first heard it she knew instantly what he was trying to express. He was lamenting the suffering of his people, the long, futile civil war that was ravaging his land, pitting brother against brother. Yet strung through the overbearing pathos of the piece was a strand of hope, so subtle as to be subliminal but unmistakable nonetheless. As Michiru played, she quickly realized her mistake. But it was too late, she couldn't stop now. Inevitably, the piece was taking on an utterly different meaning for her. It evoked the pain of a family divided by lies and betrayal, of dear friends finding themselves on the opposite sides of a bitter conflict. It expressed the anguish of having seen friends suffer, of knowing that she could have prevented it, of wondering if forgiveness and redemption could ever be possible. Tears flowed down her cheeks from her closed eyes. Desperately she looked inside herself, but could not find what was missing. No matter how she tried, she could not find that golden strand of hope. The pathos ruled unchallenged. When she was done, there was only silence. She just held her instrument at her side, stood with head bowed and eyes closed. She could not bring herself to look. She knew what she would see in their faces. In this age when they needed it more than ever, she had wanted to give them a small gift of hope. Defeated by her own despair, she had failed even that. After a while, applause started. Polite, restrained. Tomorrow the critics in the audience would no doubt be clutching for superlatives, declaring her encore to be the highlight of the concert. She didn't care. She bowed and left the stage quickly. It was a rare occasion for her to be driving herself home. As happened every now and then, she had a concert on the same day that Haruka was racing. She couldn't help worrying that Haruka's own anger and frustration would make her careless and distracted as well. But she knew there was one place Haruka would never lose her head. When sitting behind a wheel, she was always in control. Michiru smiled sadly to herself. *Maybe if you had been watching me tonight, I could have looked in your eyes and found that golden thread of hope.* Michiru drove through the front gate and approached the house, wondering at how dark it looked. It was too early for everybody to be in bed yet. She parked the car in the garage, expecting to see Hotaru there to greet her. More often than not she would be there, when the security system announced that one of them had opened the gate. Maybe she had turned in early. Michiru took her violin case off the floor of the van, locked up and headed into the house. The hall lights were on, as usual. The living room was lit dimly by a single lamp. Setsuna was sitting on the couch, her back to Michiru. She appeared to be alone, and she didn't respond to Michiru's entry. Michiru was about to speak, but noticed Setsuna was slumped over a bit. It wasn't her habit to doze off in the living room, but it looked as if that's what she had done. Treading lightly, Michiru walked around the couch. Setsuna was staring into space. Her hand rested on the table beside the couch, near a half full brandy snifter. There were four open bottles of cognac on the coffee table in front of her. *Oh boy.* Setsuna finally looked at her with heavy-lidded eyes. "Welcome home." She spoke very slowly and carefully. "Thanks," Michiru said automatically. She put her violin case down on the table. "You okay?" "Fine." Michiru gestured at the bottles. "You must have gotten an early start." "I skipped dinner." "You ....? After four bottles, I'm surprised you're conscious." "Three." The hand that wasn't resting by the snifter moved slowly to point at the last bottle in line. "Help yourself." Michiru picked up the bottle and squinted at the label. "This looks about a hundred years old." "Three hundred." Michiru blinked. She put it back down very, very carefully. "It must be pretty valuable." "Worth more than this house." Setsuna was not given to exaggeration. So that meant ... *shit*. Michiru slumped down heavily into the chair behind her. "Setsuna ... would it be indelicate of me to ask what has prompted you to consume eighty million yen worth of liquor?" Setsuna moved her hand again, her more or less steady finger pointing at the other end of the table. There was a long, folded piece of paper there. Michiru reached over and took it, unfolded it. Her eyes had adjusted to the dim light now, so she instantly recognized Hotaru's beautiful, flowing calligraphy. "What's this?" "Read it and you'll see." Michiru complied. My dearest Setsuna, Haruka and Michiru: Please forgive me for not speaking to you in person. But this is very difficult for me, and I think putting my words down on paper is the only way I can explain myself properly. Yesterday, I went to the Princess and asked her to let me help her fight the Ancients. She has accepted me, and I plan to help her in any way I can. I have done this with full knowledge of the possible consequences of my actions. I understand that we may be extinguishing the last hope of Crystal Tokyo ever being founded. The Princess understands this too, we all do. But we have made our decision to fight them, to stop them from harming any more people, whatever the cost. Please don't think that I hold any of you in anything less than the highest regard. Even if you help the Ancients to avoid us, I will understand that you are doing it for what you consider good reasons. I know you are fighting for our world's future. And I know that you would never, ever willingly do anything that would put the Princess in danger. I may very well be putting her in greater danger by my own actions. Yours may be the correct path, but I find that I can no longer walk that path. Until this matter is behind us, I hope you'll understand why I think it's best that I live elsewhere. Even if you would still have me, I don't think it would be right for me to ask you to live with me when I am unable to accept the course you have set. Today, I packed what things I really need and took them to my father's house. He has accepted the story that I simply want to visit with him for a while. I hope I can bother you have the rest of my things sent over at your convenience. I know you must be very disappointed with me, and you have every right to be. If you wish to talk, I am willing to listen. But please understand that I have promised the Princess to follow her lead on all things, and I will not break that promise for anything. Needless to say, if you ever have need of Saturn, her help is yours without question or condition. With love and respect, your friend and sister, now and always, Tomoe Hotaru Michiru looked up from the letter to find Setsuna watching her. "Have you spoken with her?" Michiru asked. Setsuna shook her head slowly. "Found that when I got home." And started hitting the bottle for the first time since they had met? No, it didn't make sense. Then something else occurred to Michiru. "You mean when you got back from seeing Ami." "Among other things." "It went badly didn't it?" Setsuna just went back to staring into space. That pretty much answered Michiru's question. "I saw Haruka's car. Does she know?" Setsuna nodded. She lifted her snifter up, brought it slowly and carefully to her lips and took a good swallow from it. She resumed her former position, still as a statue. She almost made getting drunk on seventeenth century cognac look like a tempting prospect. A peerless aesthetic experience that conveniently dulled all pain. But she guessed Setsuna was not the one who needed company right now. "I think I'd better go see her." She stood and picked up her violin case. "At least don't fall asleep here, okay?" Another nod. Michiru sighed. She turned and headed for her bedroom. The bedroom was also dim, lit only by the reading lamp on Haruka's side of the bed. Haruka was sitting up in bed, wearing the truncated T- shirt and briefs that she favoured for bedclothes. She smiled and put a marker in the book she was reading. Michiru recognized it. One of those dreadful books on the nature of evil that Ami used to read. Haruka usually had little interest in those books, she must really be depressed. Well, at least it was better than getting dead drunk. "Welcome back," Haruka said. She got off the bed. They linked hands and kissed. "Did you talk to Setsuna?" Haruka asked. "Yes, though I doubt she'll remember in the morning. She showed me Hotaru's letter." "She was sitting there when I got home. She was already on the second bottle." "She's started the fourth now," Michiru said. Haruka shook her head. "It's a real shock, but still I'm surprised she's taking it so hard." Michiru sighed. "Well, at least she didn't start in with the absinthe." Haruka raised an eyebrow. "We still have some of that left?" "Haruka ..." "Sorry." Haruka took her violin case, took it over to the closet for her. "Did your concert go well?" "It will get good reviews, I'm sure." Haruka reached up and put the violin case in its usual place on the closet shelf. She turned and looked at Michiru again, frowning. "You played that new piece as an encore, didn't you?" Michiru nodded. "I don't know what I was thinking." She didn't have to say more. Haruka would know what that piece would mean for her, even if she had forgotten. She walked up to Michiru, kissed her again. "I'm sorry, it might have been different if I was there." Michiru smiled. "I suppose you won today, you always drive best when you have frustration to work off." "Yeah, I did." She cocked her head. "Michiru, did Setsuna look ... okay?" Michiru knew what she was really asking. "I think she's just going to finish her fourth bottle and sleep it off, she won't go skinny dipping in the fountain or anything." She turned around. "Can you unfasten this?" Haruka helped her with the dress. "I felt sort of bad leaving her, but it really looked like she wanted to be alone." "She does," Michiru said. She slipped out of the dress. "It's not in her nature to cry on anybody's shoulder. Until she came across us, she couldn't even tell anybody who she really was. That lasted for centuries. For her, dealing with things by herself comes as naturally as breathing." "I thought maybe that had changed now," Haruka said. She walked back to the bed, leaned back against the upright pillow again. "I mean, we've all been together for four years now." "Four years is nothing to her," Michiru reminded her. She opened a drawer and selected a night dress. She didn't feel like taking another shower today, she'd just go wash up. "From her point of view, we more or less just met her." "I find that hard to believe," Haruka said. "I mean, if she's so used to being alone, why is Hotaru's moving out hitting her so hard?" "It's not just that." Michiru said, laying her nightdress on the bead and heading for the attached bathroom. "She met Ami today. It sounds like it didn't go well." Haruka got up from the bed and followed her to the bathroom, evidently deciding she didn't want to be shouting across the room. "About all she told me about that was Ami has no intention of changing her mind about the Ancients. They're going to hunt them down, and to tell you the truth that's fine with me." Michiru switched on the bathroom light and walked over to the sink while Haruka leaned against the door jamb and crossed her arms. They continued to talk while Michiru removed her makeup and washed. "Haruka, we all want to hunt down the ones that attacked Rei, that's not the issue. Hotaru didn't leave us just to go seek revenge." "Yeah, I know," Haruka said. "She can't accept the price of gaining the Palace." She was silent for a moment. "So you think it's the meeting with Ami that's shook Setsuna up?" Michiru noted how Haruka had steered away from the topic of Hotaru. "Well, it was a pretty serious one two punch for her," she said. "Of the inner Senshi, Ami was definitely the one Setsuna was closest to. I think they were becoming better friends than either of us realized. But for all her kindness, Ami can be very uncompromising. She probably won't have anything to do with Setsuna anymore. Or with us. You know, I suspect Setsuna came home with the intention of asking Hotaru to go talk to Ami, leverage her gratitude over Hotaru's healing her." "God, do you think so? I couldn't see her being so ..." "Manipulative?" Michiru finished for her. She chuckled. "You ought to know better. Still, coming home and finding that letter must have been the last straw. All the people who looked up to her have abandoned her now." "I still look up to her," Haruka said, sounding a bit defensive. "So do I. But we look to her for guidance for more or less intellectual reasons. Hotaru was like a daughter to her, Ami like a little sister. That's a lot different." Haruka was silent for a while again. "I know she's made her choice and I can accept that, but do you think we could persuade Hotaru to come over here? I mean, just to talk?" Michiru had seen this coming. "What would we talk about?" "Well ... I think it's important we all know there are no bad feelings. I mean, writing a letter is all very well, but we should talk about it too." Michiru finished washing, took a towel and dried her face. "Haruka, if she came here now there's probably something else we'd end up talking about, something we should have talked about a long time ago, but never did." Haruka frowned. "What do you mean?" Michiru walked into the doorway and looked closely at Haruka. "I mean the time we tried to kill her." It took a moment for her meaning to register. "Michiru, she already knows about that. She got all her old memories back when Nephrenia reawakened Saturn." "Yes, but we never *talked* about it. Not in all this time. We just assumed it wasn't necessary, assumed she understood. Maybe we were wrong." Haruka shook her head. "You don't think it's really because of that, do you?" "No. But think about it. If we bring her here and one of us starts lecturing her about how the end justifies the means, where do you think that's going to lead?" Michiru could see that Haruka understood now. She turned and walked into the bedroom, stripping out of her underwear as she went. "It's either that or the business of the Holy Grail that Usagi was shouting at Setsuna about. As usual, the Princess cuts right to the bone. The fact is, if it was up to us, Hotaru wouldn't even exist now. We both know that." "Michiru, she was a stranger to us then." "She was no stranger to Small Lady or to the Princess. They were the first ones to show her love, not us." She walked over to the bed and took her nightdress. Haruka was looking very thoughtful. When she finished dressing, Michiru walked over to her and they joined in a loose embrace. Haruka looked intently into her eyes. "It was such a short time, with her growing at such a horrific speed. But she may have been the closest thing to a child we'll ever know. And then we just took it for granted she'd always be here." Michiru nodded. "And now she's gone." "Why did it take me this long to regret being away from her most of these past few years? We shouldn't have been watching her grow up by long distance." Michiru smiled. "She was always so glad to see us come back, I guess we figured that was enough." "After this business is over, I think we should try to make things different. For all of us." "Haruka, I have a feeling that when these events have played themselves out, things will be very different for all of us, whether we have the Palace or not." "Right. But as long as we're all still around to protect the Princess, that's the important thing." She looked away as she said it, her expression grim. Michiru could feel her tense up. Michiru put a finger next to Haruka's chin and very gently coaxed it around so that they were looking at each other again. "You don't need to hide it you know. I love our Princess just as desperately as you do." Haruka's body relaxed a bit, and her stoic expression gave way to the pain. "God, what I wouldn't give just to see her smile again." They embraced tightly. "I know," Michiru said softly. She kissed Haruka's ear, stroked her hair. "There's a wall between her and us again. It's killing me too." They stood like that for a while. "You ready for bed?" "It's a bit early, but I guess so." They climbed in and Haruka killed the light. Michiru snuggled up next to her. "You figure Setsuna's passed out yet?" Haruka asked. "I doubt it. I'll go check in about an hour or so. If she's out, I'll put a blanket over her." "In an hour? If you plan to be up in an hour, what are we doing in bed?" Michiru sighed. "Light of my life, sometimes you can be thick as a brick." ***** Artemis sat on the ornamental stone lantern and peered in the window. It amazed him that people who were so security conscious didn't even bother closing the blinds. Michiru had given him quite a show. Of course he had to sneak into the back yard to see it, something that would have been quite difficult for anything bigger than a cat. Now that the lights had gone out, his feline senses came into play. After a little while his mouth spread in a sharp-toothed grin. *I'd always wondered about that.* Setsuna was the only one not in bed, and judging from what she had consumed she certainly wasn't going anywhere. There was nothing more to see today. Time to go deplete the local rodent population. It was really too far to go back to Minako's place each night, so he would have to just live off the land. Only Minako and Luna knew about this stakeout. The consensus of the group had been that there was little point in trying to seek information from Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Later on, Minako had pointed out to the two cats that there were ways of getting information, and then there were ways. Luna hadn't liked the idea of keeping this a secret. But when working your way through a web of deceit, sometimes it was necessary to play the game. They might just get lucky and find out about Setsuna's contact with the Ancients. For now, the less people who knew about this, the better. Artemis wiggled his way between two of the bars of the big black iron gate that gave entry to the property. As he padded down the sidewalk, a man emerged from the little walkway that separated Setsuna's property from the next. Time for the kitty-cat routine. Artemis stopped, gave the usual wary, curious cat look and meowed. The man looked down at him as if he had never seen a cat before. He took a couple of steps closer and crouched down. Artemis was thinking of bolting. Then the man's puzzled expression was gone, and he smiled. "Hello, Artemis. I thought that was you." *Don't lose it.* Artemis meowed again, keeping up the facade while he tried to figure out why he should know who this was. "I don't imagine you'd recognize me. We only met once or twice, and it was a very long time ago. I was called Cyrus back then, but now I go by the name of Daniel Churchland." A very long time ago? No, he couldn't mean ... what the hell was going on here? "Setsuna told me you've been working mostly with Venus. At a guess, I'd say the Princess has found out Pluto was deceiving her, and you're here to try and find out what she's really up to. Am I right?" Artemis just meowed again, keeping up the routine. This was hitting him too fast, he had no idea what to make of it. The man who called himself Daniel smiled sadly. He stood up straight again. "I understand, you have no reason to trust me. Especially since I am a very old acquaintance of Pluto's, you'd expect my loyalty to be with her. But the fact is, my old friend is taking a very dangerous course, and I'd like to help steer her from that course, whether she wishes it or not. She and I have parted ways ... once again. Before that, she confided in me, told me her plan. Put simply, she wishes the Ancients to make the Crystal Palace for her, so that she can put the Princess on the throne of a new Moon Kingdom. She means to demolish the world as we know it and bring about a new order built on the Old Powers. We need to stop her. I guess I'm here for much the same reason you are. I had a hell of a time hunting down her place. But you see, I've had to live the same lies that she has, all these centuries. I know all the tricks." After a moment the man shrugged, as if accepting he wouldn't be getting any response. "If you change your mind and want to talk, just look up Daniel Churchland in the Shibuya listings, you'll find my number there. Please give my warmest regards to the Princess and the Sailor Senshi. Tell them I would very much like to meet them again." He turned and walked away. Artemis just stood there and watched him go. It was hell, resisting the urge to go talk to the man. But it would be too risky, he just didn't know enough about him, in fact didn't know a damn thing about him other than that he had to be an acquaintance of Setsuna's. "Curiouser and curiouser," he muttered. End Chapter 9 --------------6B03D4C225E-- From - Wed Jan 07 23:55:29 1998 Return-Path: Received: from smtp27.bellglobal.com (smtp27.bellglobal.com [204.101.251.55]) by pop50.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id VAA22506 for ; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:07:46 -0500 (EST) Received: from access.mbnet.mb.ca (root@access.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.11]) by smtp27.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id VAA15446 for ; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:07:42 -0500 (EST) Received: from ts8m-11.mbnet.mb.ca (ts8m-11.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.142]) by access.mbnet.mb.ca (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id UAA23576; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 20:07:19 -0600 (CST) Message-ID: <34B45F49.5C4B@mbnet.mb.ca> Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 21:08:25 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Win16; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 10] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------2DB66EEA775A" X-UIDL: 5111ca20dced8e18c4d38d62774adf36 X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: 3171 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------2DB66EEA775A Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com --------------2DB66EEA775A Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; name="SECRET10.TXT" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SECRET10.TXT" Secrets Chapter 10 - Behind the Masks The old building looked about a hundred years old, and smelled even older. Probably had about the cheapest rooms you could find in this neighbourhood, Shoji thought. No doubt that's why she was staying here. He couldn't imagine her holding any sort of steady work, not in her condition. He was pretty sure he remembered the room number. In fact the number had fallen off the door, but you could tell where it had been easily enough, could read it from the unstained spot it had left on the door. Which was probably why the manager didn't bother replacing it. Assuming this place had a manager. Shoji knocked sharply on the door. "Akiko-kun, you in there?" After about a minute and two more knocks, the door opened. Looked like he had the right place. Akiko looked at him with heavy-lidded bloodshot eyes. She had on just a threadbare yukata. She looked older than her thirty years. The sauce was starting to take its toll. Shoji pulled the sake bottle halfway out of the paper bag he was holding it in, showed it to her. "Thought I'd drop by for a visit. Feel like a drink?" She looked down, and her eyes lingered on the bottle. Without a word, she opened the door wide and shuffled aside to let him in. Shoji went and sat down beside the only piece of furniture in the little room. Akiko shuffled over and awkwardly lowered herself down to the floor on the other side of the little table. The bottle beside her was empty. No wonder she had looked so lovingly at what he had brought her. As he cracked open the bottle, he noticed that she only had one glass left. Probably had broken all the others. He really wouldn't want to drink out of glasses that hadn't been cleaned in weeks anyway. Not that it was going to matter. Suddenly Akechi was behind her. He put his fingers onto the sides of her head. Her eyes went wide and her body jerked. Then her head slumped forward, her eyes closing shut. Akechi took a hold of her, eased her gently back so that she was lying prone on the dirty bamboo mats. "Nice work," Shoji said. "Didn't see you myself. You must be getting really good if you can mask from the likes of her." Akechi shrugged. "She wasn't paying attention. They usually aren't." "Most of 'em haven't got much attention span left at the best of times." He closed his eyes. **Yui-chan, we're all set.** **Okay.** He opened his eyes again, sent a mental image of the place. There wasn't much room to 'port in here. But Yui was really good. She popped in just beside the table, holding Hitomi's hand. Yui smiled at him. **Did she suspect?** **Nope. All I had to do was put up a mask and think about sake. She could have seen through it if she wanted to.** **But I guess she didn't want to,** Hitomi said. Shoji gestured towards Akiko's prone body. **Yui, the floor is yours.** **Right.** She turned towards Akiko and put her hands out. Shoji could see her aura expanding slowly. She was being careful and gentle. She didn't like the black sheep, but mostly she just felt sorry for them. Though not sorry enough to have any objection to Hitomi's plan. Before long, the little kaleidoscope of light motes that was the physical manifestation of Akiko's life force rose from her body. It collected in a little ball between Yui's hands. **It came out real easy,** she said. **Must be because Akechi stunned her,** Shoji said. **Hitomi, you want to give it a try?** Yui turned around to face her white-haired friend. Hitomi bent down to examine Akiko's life force. She rubbed her chin meditatively. **Doesn't look like I would meet much resistance. Almost like an animal. She wouldn't even be aware. Yeah, I think this will work.** **Go for it,** Shoji said. Hitomi's eyes glowed. Shoji could feel her projecting her will into the life force. He heard her sending like an echo resonating off the naked life force. **Listen closely. I need you to find something for me. I need you to find the ones with the ancient souls. They are walking among us as we speak. You can tell them by their auras, great white auras that burn as steady as the sun and seem to go on forever. You will walk among the people and seek out the ones with the ancient souls. When you find one, you will send out a message to me with all your might. You will send me an image of the person's face. You will send it only to me. Now that I have touched your mind, you know me well and can do that easily. I am your friend, so you want to help me, you want it more than anything in the world.** Hitomi's eyes went back to normal. She stood up straight. **That ought to do it.** **Do you think it will work?** Yui said. **Assuming these Sailor Senshi all have auras that look the way this Tetsuya guy described to Shoji.** **He was very specific,** Shoji said. **Described it better than I've ever heard him describe anything. Made it sound like even one of us could see it if we really looked hard. I figure they'd all stand out like a sore thumb for her.** **I guess I'd better put her back then,** Yui said. She held the little spinning flurry of lights over Akiko's body and slowly opened her hands. It drifted down, spread out and disappeared into her. Akechi knelt down and put a hand on Akiko's forehead. **She'll be out for about an hour or so. I cleared her short term memory, she won't even know Shoji's been here.** **Then I guess we're done.** Shoji stood up. **Everyone feel up to doing another one tonight?** Nods all around. **Okay. Nobody saw me come in, so I guess I'll just 'port out with you.** **Are you just going to leave the bottle?** Akechi asked. **Yeah, it's the least we can do.** **Won't she wonder where it came from?** Yui asked. **Believe me, she won't care.** He held out his hand to Yui. **Next one's nearest to our East Azabu teleport point.** Yui grinned. **You got it.** She took his hand and held out her other to their two friends. **All aboard!** ***** "Good afternoon, Doctor Constantine," the nurse said. "Good afternoon," Jeneth replied. "I'd like to look in on Kino-san." "One of her friends is with her," the nurse replied. "Would you like me to go ask her to leave?" "No, that's fine. Thank you." She walked down the hallway towards Makoto's room. Jeneth reviewed the case in her head as she walked. No change in nearly two months. Both conventional scans and her own probes agreed there was no sign of brain damage. But in her own mind Jeneth knew that the more time passed, the less hope there was of her ever waking. Even if she was physically capable, eventually her spirit would simply forget how to be in a conscious state. Her immortal Avatar body could keep her soul trapped in limbo forever. Eventually, they might need to release her once and for all. Not a day went by when Jeneth did not think back to that horrible night when the Avatar Jupiter had been struck down. Jeneth and Saturn had undone the ESPer's work, and then had spent hours trying to revive her, all to no avail. With great reluctance, they had decided that she would probably need long hospitalization. Saturn had coaxed Jupiter's body into weaving the remarkable disguise magic the Avatars used here when they walked among their people. The Avatar Pluto had identified the other injured girl as Mercury, then had sternly commanded Jeneth and her companions to swear an oath of silence. They had gladly done so, though it had seemed rather pointless. Who would they tell? Nevertheless, they all made it a point not to question the Avatars' need to remain anonymous, not to inquire about their assumed identities. Jeneth still knew very little about Makoto, except that she had no family. As it turned out, Ami was her designated proxy, so Jeneth and the doctors at the hospital here had mostly been discussing Makoto's condition with her. Ami's medical knowledge was considerable, and in discussion with other doctors it had come out that she was in medical school. But that was about all Jeneth knew about her. Except that, like Saturn, she obviously had the soul of a healer. And that in recent weeks she seemed to be very disturbed, worrying over something besides her sick friend's condition. Jeneth opened the door, endeavouring to be quiet. She heard a woman's voice. It sounded like she was reciting a story, probably reading from a book. Jeneth entered quietly. A very pretty young blonde woman was sitting beside Makoto's bed, reading from an open book. She noticed Jeneth entering. She stopped her reciting and smiled at Jeneth, waving casually. She placed a mark in her book, closed it and turned to Makoto. "Sorry Mako-chan, one of your doctors is here. I'm just going to go talk to her, okay? I'll be right back." She put the book down on the bedside table, got up and walked around the bed to where Jeneth was standing. "Hi Jennifer. I wanted to talk to you sometime soon, so this is really good timing." Jeneth raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, have we met?" She was wondering at how this woman knew her name. And it was unusual for people here to address doctors by their given names. "Well, sort of but not really. My name is Tsukino Usagi." "I'm Doctor Jennifer Constantine. Are you a friend of Kino-san?" "Yeah, I'm a friend of hers and Ami's" "Ah, yes. Ami told me that some of her other friends had been coming here reading to her. It's very sweet of you." Usagi smiled cheerfully. "Well, Mako-chan gets bored easily, I don't want to leave her just lying here with nothing to do." Jeneth wondered just what Ami was telling her friends about Makoto's condition and chances. She made a note to speak to her about it. "You said you wanted to speak with me, Tsukino-san?" "You can just call me Usagi. Like I said, we've sort of met so you don't have to be formal or anything." "I'm sorry, you have the advantage on me." "Well ... Uh ... maybe it would be simplest if I just showed you." And suddenly the room was full of feathers. Jeneth staggered back, almost fell. To her aura sense it was like an explosion. She clamped her eyes shut, shook her head vigorously, trying to clear it. She opened her eyes again. Sailor Moon smiled warmly. "Hi Jeneth. Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." She looked different. Now her high boots and long gloves were white and her short skirt was yellow with blue and red trim. A white ornament like bird's wings framed a little golden heart at her breast. Most striking were the great white feathery wings that spread out behind her. And her aura was indescribably beautiful, even more so than Jeneth had remembered, which seemed impossible. Jeneth fought the urge to go down on her knees, remembering how the Senshi had dropped hints they didn't much like that sort of formality. "Sailor Moon. I'm so happy to see you again. And I'm honoured by the trust you've placed in me." "It's good to see you too," Sailor Moon said. "I'm sorry I've been such a stranger, but I've been kind of busy." She took a step towards Jeneth then seemed to suddenly remember something. "Uh, just a minute." She put a hand to her breast, and suddenly she was surrounded by a whirling mass of shimmering red ribbons. Her whole body seemed to ripple like it was melting. A moment later, Usagi was standing in her place. She smiled sheepishly. "I tend to knock things over when I walk around like that indoors, this is safer." She walked over to Jeneth and took her hand in both of her own. "Jennifer ... uh, sorry, can I call you that?" Jeneth smiled. "You can call me Jenny if you like." "Jenny, I haven't had a chance to thank you properly for taking such good care of my friends. If you and K'Theelm and Thetan hadn't been there, they might be a lot worse off. They might have even died." "It's my pleasure. I'm just sorry I haven't been able to do more for poor Makoto." Usagi smiled brightly. "You and Saturn already did your part. Now we just have to bring her around, that's all." Jeneth decided to let that slide for now. But she would definitely have to speak with Ami later on. "We haven't seen you or Mars for a while. Ami and Sailor Venus told us you were both fine, but I was beginning to worry." Usagi sighed. Her expression sobered. "Mars has been ... hurt. Jenny, do you know about what happened to Hino Rei?" Jeneth gasped. Suddenly it all fell into place, like a curtain being drawn aside. She'd read about the woman who'd lost her grandfather in the attack on Hikawa shrine. And Mars had said the priest was her grandfather. "Oh no ..." Usagi nodded. "She's Sailor Mars." "Oh God, why didn't I see it?" "It's part of our disguise magic. Or something. You couldn't see it until I told you." Jeneth reached out and squeezed Usagi's shoulder very gently. "Oh Usagi, I'm so sorry. She lived at Hikawa shrine, didn't she?" "Yes. She's living with my husband and me right now." Usagi smiled at the look of surprise that must have come across Jeneth's face. She lifted her hand up, showing off her wedding band. "Mamo-chan and I got married just a little while ago. We had to cut our honeymoon short to come back and try to help Rei get through this." Jeneth shook her head. "She looked so utterly devastated. How is she now?" "It's been really hard for her. She lost her fiancee and another good friend too. But she's a lot better now." "Oh no. How could I have let this happen?" Usagi surprised her by reaching out and taking her by the shoulders. Her touch was gentle, but her expression was stern. "Jeneth, don't. I wanted to blame myself too, but Rei begged me not to. She would say the same to you. In fact I'm going to take her to you so she can say it to you herself." Jeneth took a deep breath and let it out. "You're right, of course." They had all done their best. As a healer, she should know better than to blame herself for not being able to save everybody. "Usagi, it would mean much to me if I could see Rei just to offer my condolences." "Of course. She'd like to see you too. She's really grateful, you know. I mean, for that night. You helped her accept that her grandfather was gone." "She did that mostly by herself. I saw her overcome her shock in just a matter of moments. Her discipline is remarkable, even for an Avatar." Usagi smiled. "Yeah. Nothing keeps Mars down for long." Jeneth noted hints of sadness being suppressed. Something different, something she was trying not to think about. "Are all the other Senshi well?" she asked cautiously. Now there was no mistaking the sadness and worry. "Jenny, to tell you the truth, about a month ago we all got another shock. I don't know how to tell you this. The people we've been hunting ... Pluto, Uranus and Neptune have been helping them to escape us." Jeneth frowned. "I don't understand." "I mean they've been working against us," Usagi said. It was a simple enough statement. But Jeneth just couldn't get her mind around the implications. Avatars betraying their leaders? Discounting the Mad Avatar, it had simply never happened. Unless .... "Usagi, could this be the work of Chaos?" she asked, her voice full of alarm. Usagi just sighed. "No, it's just a ... disagreement. It's kind of complicated. These people who were demolishing the holy places, and who attacked Rei, they're called the Ancients. They have this magical artifact called the Seed Crystal that they think they can transform into something called the Crystal Palace. But they need life energy or something to do it. That's what they're getting from the shrines and temples. And that's probably what they were trying to get from Rei." "They meant to take the soul of an Avatar? As a sacrifice?" It was all Jeneth could to do keep herself from shouting. She shook with rage. "It's an abomination!" "Pluto would never sacrifice one of us," Usagi said, her tone implying that the matter was closed. "But she would sacrifice other innocent people. She thinks the Crystal Palace is the only thing that can give our world a future. She thinks its the only thing that can save us from the chaos we let loose. She'll do anything to make sure it gets built, or created or whatever you want to call it. Even help the Ancients collect human souls." Jeneth tried to calm herself, to think clearly. "If Pluto is helping the Ancients, she must know where this Seed Crystal is. These Ancients are killers, surely they shouldn't be allowed to possess something like that." "Pluto doesn't know where it is, at least that's what she says. Like I said, it's complicated. She says only the Ancients can make the Crystal Palace, and they need life energy to do it." "Then how does she know the Crystal Palace is so important?" Jeneth asked. "We've all seen the Crystal Palace. We've been there. In the future, I mean. Pluto took us there, to fight enemies who had come here from a thousand years in the future." "She can travel through time?" Jeneth asked. "Yeah. And that's the really complicated part. She can't just go a little bit into the future to see how things will turn out. Something bad would happen, though she never says what. She only did it that one time because it was the only way to fight the enemy. But she thinks something bad is going to happen to this planet sometime soon, and that the Palace is the only thing that can save us. She may even be right." "But you're still going to fight the Ancients," Jeneth said hesitantly. "If they try to harm anybody else, we'll fight them." "Usagi, it pains me to ask this. Will you also fight the three Avatars who have betrayed you?" Usagi shook her head. "They would never do anything to harm us. They'll help the Ancients avoid us. But if we do catch them, Pluto and the others won't fight us." Jeneth nodded. "I understand. We'll continue to do all we can to help you." "Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you about." "Is there something more we can do?" "Kind of. Ami tells me that K'Theelm's symbiont thing is ready to travel through space." Jeneth frowned. "Yes, he finished preparing it some days ago. But it's still only good for very long jumps between stars. He can't make short jumps close to a planet the way you do, if that's what you're thinking of." "No, that's not what I was thinking of. Jenny, I think the three of you should go home." Jeneth shook her head, "Usagi, we already talked about this. We want to stay and help you until these ... these Ancients are no longer a threat. K'Theelm may be close to finding a way to break through this interference they've been putting up." "I know." Usagi's brow furrowed, as if she was having difficulty finding the words. "But it's different now. I'm not sure I know how to put this. The thing is, Pluto may be right. If I fight the Ancients, it may destroy our planet's future. Maybe I'm just too weak to accept what I have to do, what I have to let happen. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I may be asking you to fight on the wrong side." Jeneth shook her head. "I can tell you don't believe that." "No, I don't. But Pluto does. I'm twenty years old, and she's been around for centuries. Maybe there are things she understands that I can't." "Galaxia was also centuries old, and she still took the wrong path." Usagi's face fell, and Jeneth realized she had said the wrong thing. "Usagi, forgive me, I didn't mean any disrespect to Pluto." Usagi managed to show a wistful smile. "I still love her you know. Once she actually sent my future daughter back in time to help me fight an enemy, did I tell you that? She's named after me. We called her Chibi- usa. She was so cute. And when she grows up she's going to be just gorgeous. You see ... well, that's a long story. Pluto was a really good friend to her. Or will be a good friend. It's all so confusing." Usagi stopped talking. She hardly seemed to be aware of Jeneth's presence now. Jeneth just watched her, unwilling to disturb her as she wrestled with some old, bittersweet memory. Then, as if coming out of a trance, she met Jeneth's gaze again. She looked calmer now. "I don't know if Pluto is right or wrong, but she's not evil. I have to protect the people in this city, on this planet. So I have to do what I think is best for them. But I can't ask you to fight against an Avatar who may be wiser than I am. It wouldn't be right." "Usagi, may I speak plainly?" Usagi looked puzzled. She just nodded. "I've only known you and your fellow Avatars, your friends, for a very short time. I've only spoken with Venus and Mercury at any great length. But even in that short time, one thing has become very obvious. They don't just follow you because it's their duty. They follow you because they love you. They protect this earth not out of duty, but because you are living in it." Jeneth took a deep breath, fighting the emotion that threatened to crack her voice, striving to speak calmly. "It would be an honour to fight alongside the Avatar who freed Galaxia from the Chaos. That would be reason enough to stay. We are yours to command, and will even leave you to return to our home if you command it. But I would ask you to let us stay. Let us stay and help the friends we have come to know, and to love." They stood there for some time. Usagi wiped a tear away. "Jeneth ... I don't want to step on some cultural taboo or whatever ... would it be improper for me to give you a kiss?" "No, it would not be at all improper." Usagi cradled Jeneth's face in her hands, kissed her warmly on the cheek. Then she hugged her tightly. "Thank you, Jeneth. Thank you." "Thank you for letting us stay." After a while, they broke their embrace. "Jeneth, I'd like you to come to my apartment tomorrow. All three of you. I owe you a dinner. Rei would love to see you again, and I'd like you to meet Mamo-chan. Did I tell you he's sort of an Avatar too?" Jeneth blinked. "You mean ... your husband?" She smiled. "Yeah. We call him Tuxedo Mask. He's kind of the Avatar of Earth." "I see." After a moment, it dawned on Jeneth that she hadn't answered Usagi's question. "Oh, sorry. Yes, we'd be happy to come over." "That's great! I'll call you after I get home and talk to Mamo-chan, okay?" "Yes, that would be fine." Jeneth smiled. "Forgive me, but I did originally come here to examine my patient. It won't take long." "Okay. Is it alright if I wait here?" "Of course. Why, were you going to read to Makoto some more?" "Yeah. I was just getting to the good part, we want to see how it turns out." ***** The old neighbourhood hadn't changed much. Mamoru had certainly been to this restaurant enough times, he could find it in his sleep. He noted with some regret that it had undergone a major facelift. This wasn't going to feel quite as nostalgic as he thought it might. At least the name hadn't changed. He walked up to the entrance and the new glass door slid aside for him. They used to put up a sliding wood door in winter, Mamoru recalled. Oh well, that's progress. He looked around the room full of new booths. About half of them were occupied. His attention was attracted by somebody waving. It looked like his dinner companion had gotten here first. She stood up as he approached. "Hi, Mamoru." "Hi, Saori. It's good to see you again." "Thanks for coming." "Not at all, we should have done this long ago." He took off his jacket and put it on the padded bench seat beside him as he sat down. "The place has changed a bit." "Yeah, but the menu's the same. I remember what your favourite was, so I ordered for the both of us." "Yose-nabe for two?" "Naturally." Mamoru smiled. "Any idea how many times we had that here?" "One winter that's practically what we lived on." Being an orphan, Mamoru had been living on his own in his high school days. Saori might just as well have been in the same position, since her parents were almost never home and she had no siblings. Having somebody just to share dinner with had been a great comfort to both of them. "I passed by your old apartment block on the way here, do your folks still live there?" Mamoru asked. "Well Mom more or less lives there, she's still on the road almost as much as Dad." "So your Dad didn't take early retirement?" Saori rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that'll be the day." Her expression brightened. "Oh, by the way I read your piece on Hikawa shrine yesterday, I really enjoyed it." "Thanks." "After taking that case I was doing research on the history of the shrine. I think I learned more from your article than all those dry old history books I had piled on my desk." "Rei helped me a lot with that one." Saori still smiled, but her eyes looked sad. "Mamoru, how's she doing?" "She's doing okay. I think moving in with us really was the best thing for her. Usagi's helped her a lot." "It must be a rather difficult situation for Usagi." Mamoru had some idea what she meant, and nodded. "You must be very proud of her," Saori said gently. "More than I could say." "You know, the uniforms we have guarding the site have been telling me that whenever Rei comes there to advise on the restoration work, there's always a very pretty lady with long, golden pigtails who never leaves her side." Mamoru smiled. "Usagi absolutely will not let her go there by herself. She says it's for moral support, but I think she's afraid something else might happen to her. Rei is her closest friend. When Usagi heard what happened she was almost hysterical, right up to the point where we got to the safe house." Saori nodded. "I remember. I still feel stupid, not having placed Rei as your friend until you told me. I met her at your wedding, after all." "If you'd been the one to interview her, I'm sure you'd have made the connection." She grinned. "That's what I like about you Mamoru, you always knew just the thing to say to make me feel better." A waiter came and brought their food plate and hotpot. They ordered drinks as well. Automatically they both split apart their chopsticks and started putting some of the carefully arranged ingredients into the warming hotpot. "You seen any of our friends lately?" Mamoru asked, as he and Saori slipped into the old routine of preparing their meal. "I'm afraid I haven't had much of a life since summer. I do nothing but police work and sleep, and not much of the latter. I'm really becoming quite a bore, as your wedding guests would no doubt attest." "You always said it was your dream to head up a really high profile investigation. I guess you should be careful what you wish for." "It's a high profile case that everybody seems to want to pretend is low profile. I've been absolutely forbidden from holding any press conferences. And anything we release has to be approved by city hall, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, some special advisory council to the Prime Minister, the spooks, Interpol and a couple of other agencies I'd never even heard of before." Mamoru recalled Rei describing her meeting with the two men who were posing as Interpol agents. He decided it wouldn't hurt to ask some questions. "Are they interfering with your investigation?" "Other than wasting my time writing reports to a dozen different people, no. Whatever resources I ask for, I get." She chuckled. "And nobody's come back to try and tell me how crazy I am." "Why would they want to do that?" "Some of them must have found my most recent reports rather bizarre. We're finally putting together a pretty clear picture of what's been going on at these temples." "I assume you can't talk about the details." "No, I probably shouldn't. But I can tell you what I think the key to this whole thing is." "And what's that?" "The Sailor Senshi." Mamoru put on a good mask of incredulity. "I'd heard they'd been sighted around a few of these temples. But people sight them whenever anything out of the ordinary happens in this city, isn't that just par for the course?" "In this case it's been fairly consistent. They've been sighted in parts of the city they've never been reported in before. It definitely coincides with the temples being destroyed. And this after being all but absent for nearly four years. It can't be just coincidence. And the physical evidence suggests they've gotten into at least two scraps with the ones attacking the temples, one of them being Hikawa shrine." "Still, I don't know." "Oh, don't make that face at me," Saori said, feigning resentment in that good natured way he remembered so well. "Have you forgotten?" He smiled, knowing what she referred to. "No. How could I forget?." Sailor Moon had saved Saori from the Amazon Trio once. Had saved them both, in fact. "Sailor Moon is as real as you or me, Mamoru. No point pretending you think otherwise." "I guess there's no denying it." "I should think so. Especially since you're married to her." Mamoru watched her in silence for a while. She just continued taking morsels from the hotpot to her plate, continued eating as if she had said the most obvious thing in the world. "I'd always wondered how much you saw that day," Mamoru said in a low voice. She finally looked at him. "When I woke up, I saw the two of you together. I saw the way you looked at each other. It was like a veil being lifted up from my eyes. Suddenly it was obvious, it felt like it should have always been obvious. I suppose it must have been a magic spell being broken." "You're not the first person to describe it that way." Saori put down her chopsticks. "Mamoru, now that this is out of the way, I can apologize to you properly." Mamoru frowned. "I don't understand." "At your wedding, I talked to you both about the case I was working on, with the full knowledge that Usagi probably knew more than she could tell me. I don't know what I was expecting to accomplish, maybe I thought she'd even confide in me. She played her part well, but afterwards I could see how I'd upset her. I guess I was thinking of her as this invincible superhero, not as a young woman trying to enjoy the happiest day of her life. It was a selfish, thoughtless thing for me to do. I hope you can forgive me." "Saori, there's nothing to forgive. It wasn't really what you said to her, Usagi had ... well, she had other problems on her mind." It looked like Saori had picked up on his dilemma, his wondering how much he should tell her. When she spoke again, the words were heartfelt, but they also sounded well rehearsed. "Mamoru, I want to make one thing absolutely clear to you. Your secret is safe with me, now and always, unconditionally. You just have to say the word, and we will never speak of this again. But even if you say the word, I want you to know that I'll always be ready to help you in any way I can. We're fighting the same enemy, and now we both know that they're killers. And we also know that they're no ordinary killers, so as far as I'm concerned the usual rules don't apply. I've been given carte blanche on this case and I'm not afraid to use it. I know I'm way out of my element here. But if there's anything at all I can do to help you fight these monsters, you only have to ask." She pointed at the hotpot. "Your meat's done." Mamoru took up his chopsticks again and moved more meat and vegetables from the steaming pot to his plate. They were old enough friends that the silence was not uncomfortable for either of them. Saori gave him the time he needed to think. "Saori, I'd like to give you something." "Oh?" She looked interested. Suddenly there was a red rose in his hand. He held it out to her. Her eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open. Slowly, a smile formed on her lips, and her shock abated. "I guess I should have known." She took the rose from him. She looked at it as if she expected it to disappear any second. Then she just took in its scent. "This isn't the proper place," Mamoru said. "But there's a great deal I need to tell you." She looked intently at him. "Mamoru, are you sure about this?" "Yes. Right now, we need all the help we can get." ***** The girl who was scrubbing Kaori's back for her politely complimented her on how smooth her skin was. Kaori gave an automatic, absent reply. Her thoughts were elsewhere. Almost two months, and not a word from her son. She had hoped he would at least send a message, send some sign that he was okay. No more temples had been destroyed, but that meant little. Now a renegade, outcast from the family, he hardly had any reason to be out collecting Soul Icons to put before the Seed Crystal. The Matriarch had made it quite clear what would happen to him, to Yui or to Akechi if any of them dared show their faces at her house. They would be scanned, and at the Matriarch's discretion they would undergo the very long, painful process of "adjustment." Kaori shuddered. More than once, she had watched the Matriarch perform her attitude adjustment. "I'm sorry ma'am, is the water too cold?" the girl asked. "No, it's fine." The girl tilted the bucket again, letting the water fall down Kaori's back and shoulders, washing the soap away. She put down the bucket, stepped over to Kaori's side and bowed. "Thank you for your patience, ma'am. Please enjoy your bath." "Thank you." When the girl had left, Kaori took the towel she had left and stood up from the wooden stool she had been sitting on while the girl washed her back. She held the towel in front of her and proceeded into the next room. In contrast to the bright, modern washing facility she had just left, the hot springs room was almost too dark to see. After coming through the curtain, she actually stood a moment to let her eyes adjust. The ceiling and walls were invisible, no doubt painted flat black. Trees, plants, rocks and sand had been placed to give the illusion of an outdoor hot spring. The only illumination was from a few ornamental lanterns that surrounded the pool. Silvery steam like liquid moonlight drifted up from the pool, seeming to envelop the room in a soft, glowing penumbra. The pool was empty. Kaori walked down the stone path. She noted that the stones were warm, no doubt heated by electricity or warm water flowing under them. They had certainly thought of everything. She stepped into the water. Not too hot, just right for a good long soak. She folded the towel, set it on one of the rocks and lowered herself into the pool. Her hair was already tied up over her head, so she found a spot she could sit where the water would just lap her collarbones. Then she settled in to await her companion. After weeks of silence, Setsuna had suddenly called and invited Kaori out to her club again. Her manner had been utterly different than the last time they had talked, calm and friendly. Kaori had wanted to ask her about what had really happened at Hikawa shrine, but Setsuna had insisted that should wait until they met. Their meeting here had been cordial enough. In front of the servants who served them tea before their bath, their conversation had of course just been small talk. When they parted to go undress and wash in their separate private rooms, Setsuna had seemed genuinely happy to see her again. Kaori found that she felt the same way. There was a barely audible rustle, and beams of light played through the mist as somebody else came through the curtain. Setsuna came into view, and waved when she spotted Kaori. She had used her only towel to wrap her long hair up over her head. "Sorry to keep you waiting." "I haven't even been in here a minute," Kaori said. "Setsuna, this place is simply gorgeous. It's hard to believe we're on the twentieth floor." "Well, it's the next best thing to a trip to the mountains." Setsuna crouched down on a smooth, flat rock just in front of Kaori, but instead of lowering herself into the water just sat on the rock and let her legs dangle in the water. "I would have suggested driving out somewhere for the night, but I'd rather not leave town just now." "I understand," Kaori said, trying not to let her discomfort show. Setsuna cocked her head, looking puzzled. Then she chuckled lightly. "Forgive me, after a couple of hundred years I think I lost all feeling of modesty. One time I walked out of the bath at the wrong time and gave one of Saturn's boyfriends quite a show. She was very annoyed with me." Kaori put her hand up as Setsuna moved to lower herself into the water. "Please, don't move on my account. You misunderstand. It's just that I've always wondered ... well, forgive me, but I don't know how else to put this. I always wondered just how human you are." Setsuna smiled, resumed her seat. "Oh, I'm all too human, believe me. I've had bruised elbows and indigestion, I've had broken bones and scarlet fever, I've nearly drowned and nearly been burned to death. The only difference is that as long as I'm alive I can heal from pretty much anything." "And you remain untouched by time." Setsuna's brows came down, making her extraordinary red eyes look sad. "Untouched by time." She looked out over the pool. "If only that were true." Kaori just watched her, unsure how to respond. When Setsuna looked at her again, her look of sadness was even more profound. "Kaori, I want to tell you how sorry I am about the way I treated you before. Hearing about what your son had done must have been a terrible shock for you. I was thinking only of my own anger, I gave no consideration for your feelings. You deserved better from me." Kaori shook her head. "You had more reason to be shocked than I. Friends of yours have died at my son's hands. At least that's what I must assume." That was as close to asking the question as Kaori felt it was proper to go. Setsuna nodded. "One of the Senshi was injured in the attack. Another lost three loved ones. Another still hangs between life and death." "Oh ...!" It was far worse than she could have imagined. "Oh, my friend ..." she breathed. She was at a complete loss for words. Setsuna's face returned to the calm, inscrutable expression Kaori was so used to seeing. "Kaori, let's be brutally honest about what has happened. The two of us conspired to weave a web of lies, and now both your loved ones and mine have suffered for it. We need to make amends." "Setsuna, how can we possibly make amends for this? How can I make amends for what I let my son do?" "Let's start here." Setsuna reached her hand behind her back, as if there were something on the rock behind her she meant to grab. When she brought her hand before her again it held something that looked like a pen. She held it out to Kaori. "Have a look." Kaori blinked. She was sure there had been nothing on the rock before. "Where ...? Did you have this taped to your back?" Setsuna laughed. "Sorry, Uranus and I have a running joke about this, it would take a while to explain. No, I pulled it from a space that always moves with me. If you want to give it a name, call it a dimensional pocket." Kaori hesitantly reached out and took the item. It looked less like a pen now, it had a little globe on one end, topped by a tiny star. "What is it?" "It's a transformation pen. It's what allows me to tap into the powers granted to me as a Sailor Senshi. It is what allows me to become Sailor Pluto." "Why are you showing me this?" "If you were to smash that down on the rock behind you with all of your strength, you would probably be able to break it. Maybe you could do the same with psychokinesis. If you did that, it would be a very long time before I would be able to manifest my powers again. Other than slightly increased speed and strength, a side effect of using these powers, I would be just an ordinary human. With the powers of an Ancient, you could kill me easily, I would be helpless." Kaori shook her head, suddenly feeling as if she were holding a fragile egg in her hand. "Setsuna, what are you saying?" "I'm saying that for years we have held each other at arm's length, keeping our secrets carefully hidden, only telling each other what little pieces of the truth we didn't think we would ever be able to use against each other. I'm saying it's time for that to end. You've become one of my dearest friends, and I honestly feel that I can trust you with my life. Out of long habit, I've kept you in the dark about what I am and what I do. I'd like that to change." It was a while before Kaori could find a voice to speak. "Setsuna ... you didn't have to do this." "Yes, I did. If you and I can't trust each other completely, then we will never be able to make amends for what has happened." "Yes, you're right of course." Kaori held the transformation pen out to Setsuna. "Be careful, the mist is making it slippery." Setsuna smiled and took the pen. "Not to worry, it's just light enough to float. And a very good thing too, I dropped it over the side of a galleon once." She reached behind her back, and when her hand was visible again, it was empty. She made a production out of displaying the front and back of her open hand. "See, nothing up my sleeve." They both laughed. It was a bad joke, but neither of them seemed to care. Kaori laughed simply at the joy of feeling the wall that she and her friend had put up between them suddenly come crashing down. Moments ago she had felt utter despair. She marvelled at how a simple act of trust had given her hope, had suddenly allowed her to believe that maybe they could make things right again. She really wanted to give Setsuna something in return. It could be painful for her, and she didn't want to spoil this wonderful moment. But it was something she felt she needed to do. "Setsuna, you mentioned that one of the Senshi was near death. Can you tell me what happened to her?" "Kaori, we don't need to discuss that right now." "I ask because I might be able to help." Setsuna nodded. "Alright. It was Sailor Jupiter who was struck down. Nobody saw it actually happen. The way Mars described it, Jupiter was standing alone, firing one of her attacks at your son's fiancee. Mars looked back a moment later, and she was on the ground convulsing. A man was standing over her. When Saturn examined her later, there were no signs of physical injury. She detected signs of what she described as a psychic attack. She used her powers to repair the immediate damage. But she was unable to wake Jupiter. She has been lying in a coma ever since." "The man must be Akechi. He's a very secretive one, but I'm quite sure he's a disruptor. He is quite capable of killing people with his disruption attack. The fact that Jupiter is alive means that either she has some natural defense, or Akechi didn't attack at full power. If Saturn was able to repair the damage quickly, then there may be hope for her. Her spirit has suffered a terrible trauma and has gone into dormancy. It will have to be coaxed back out." "What do you suggest?" "Have people been visiting her?" Setsuna smiled. "She has about half a dozen friends who come talk to her and read to her for hours on end." "That's a good start. There is one other thing I can suggest. As you know, I have a limited ability to link minds with non-telepaths. If I can see her, I might be able to talk with her in a way that is more immediate, more likely to get the attention of her sleeping spirit." "Yes, I can take you to her." Setsuna suddenly looked sad again. "Kaori, I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but we'll have to arrange to go when I'm sure none of the other Senshi will be there. Right now, in their minds they're painting all the Ancients with a broad brush." Which was a delicate way of saying they though all Ancients were killers. "I'd be willing to meet with the other Senshi first, ask their permission." Setsuna sighed. "It might not be that simple. You see, about a month ago I met with Sailor Mars and some of the others. She was the one who lost loved ones in the attack on Hikawa shrine, you see. I was trying to make amends for what I had let happen. Of course, I was still lying to her." Kaori shuddered at the level of self loathing that showed in Setsuna's voice. "Well, somehow she had obtained some information on her own. She knew about the Seed Crystal, and she knew about my telling you where the Refugees were." Kaori still had little idea who these refugees were, only that Setsuna had warned her about them. But now was not the time to ask. "So what did you tell her?" "Even if I had decided to tell her everything, which I should have, I probably would never have been given the chance. She was utterly furious. To keep us from coming to blows, Sailor Moon sent me away. With one exception I haven't spoken to any of them since." "Setsuna, I thought you were living with at least one of the other Senshi." Setsuna raised an eyebrow. "I don't remember ever having told you that." "It's one of the things I've deduced from little hints." Setsuna's mouth spread in an ironic smile. "Oh what a tangled web we weave. Yes, I'm currently living with Uranus and Neptune. They're the only Senshi I've had contact with in the past month." Kaori sighed. "Oh my friend, what a mess we've made for ourselves. Setsuna, I would really like to help Jupiter if I can, but I don't think any good can come from acting in secret any more. I really think we need to try and speak with the other Senshi first. Tell them everything." "Yes, you're right. I shouldn't have even suggested it. I guess old habits die hard." Her irony was a little more good natured this time. "Actually, I've been giving some thought to just what I should tell the others, just what we should do. I mean, now that you and I have cleared the air. If I may ask, how are your relations with the Matriarch right now?" "I would describe them as strained. I went to her immediately after you called that night, told her what I know. I didn't tell her about you though, I made it sound like Yui ... that's my son's fiancee ... had called me. I'm not sure she believed me. She probably suspects that I'm hiding something. She may think that I know where my son is, which I don't. He would face severe punishment if the Matriarch ever found him. It may be only a matter of time before she confronts me." "It sounds like we're both in hot water with our leaders. So we'll have to be very careful about what we're going to propose to them." Kaori frowned. "What to propose?" "Put simply, I think we should propose an alliance. An alliance between the Senshi and the Ancients." As usual, Setsuna just sat and gave Kaori all the time she needed to think. And she needed plenty. "I assume you're proposing we collaborate to bring the Crystal Palace into being," she said at length. "Exactly. Between us, I think we can do it, and do it without harming anybody else. Mars is a very powerful spiritualist, and Mercury has technology from the Silver Millennium at her disposal. Also, Sailor Moon has a very powerful artifact that might be able to do more for the Seed Crystal than the energy from any number of holy places. Both our leaders want the same thing, they want to protect their loved ones. The Palace can serve as a sanctuary for both of us in the darkness that is surely coming. The only thing that has been dividing us is the method your son was using, first desecrating holy places then taking human souls. If-" "Wait!" Kaori said. She got up out of the water and went to sit beside Setsuna on the rock. She had been starting to feel a bit waterlogged anyway. "What do you mean, taking human souls?" "I thought you knew. They didn't try to attack the shrine, they attacked Mars. She told us the attack felt like what other enemies had done to her when they were taking spiritual energy from her. I assumed her life energy was going to be used in the same way as that of the holy sites. Does this surprise you?" "Yes. He never said anything to me." Kaori thought about this for a moment. "Yui must have found something when she was looking into the crystal. For some reason, they must think that taking life energy from people will help awaken the Seed Crystal." "Kaori." Setsuna's expression was suddenly grim. She reached out and took Kaori's hand. "Even if they've stopped doing this, even if they've just gone into hiding, we're going to have to hunt them down. They need to answer to both our leaders. That's the only way this is going to work. You know that, don't you?" Kaori nodded. "I have no illusions about what my son faces. He's my only child, so of course I'd forgive him anything. But I can't protect him any longer. Not when so much is at stake. And it's probably for the best. The Matriarch has powers that can help curb his violent tendencies. It will be painful, but it will be-" her voice broke. She looked away. "Oh God." After a moment, she felt Setsuna's hand rest lightly on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, Kaori. Maybe I should go." She shook her head. "No," she managed to say. "Please don't go." "Okay." She slid closer and put her arm around Kaori's shoulders. Kaori just sobbed quietly for a few minutes. After her tears were all done, Kaori just kept looking down into the pool. "Setsuna, we need to talk about what I'm going to tell the Matriarch." "Are you sure you're up to this?" "Yes." They told each other everything. Even though their talk went on all afternoon, nobody came to kick them out. Kaori didn't even want to think of how much it had cost Setsuna to reserve the room for that long. ***** Naru stood at the gate that led into the outdoor mall, her arms crossed, tapping her foot. *Where on Earth could he be?* She was supposed to meet her husband here fifteen minutes ago. She ran a hand through her wavy chestnut hair. It went down below her shoulders, it would need a cutting pretty soon. Another of the little things she never seemed to get around to. "Naru-chaaan!" She sighed. He was still a block away, but she heard him clear as day. The people around him all flinched and stared at this young man suddenly shouting at the top of his lungs. They gave him a wide berth as he came running headlong. She put her hands on her hips and glared at him as he came staggering up to her. "Umino, do you know what time it is?" He put down his briefcase just so that he could clap his hands together in the traditional display of supplication. "Sorry! Sorry! This new client had a million questions. They kept me late. I had to run most of the way." He was a bit winded, but not badly so. He was in a lot better shape than he had been in their school days. Since they were married, she had bullied him into a very rigorous exercise program. For his own good, of course. Since she was training to be a nurse, he had to defer to her on matters of family health. At least he damned well better defer to her. "Well, I hope your tie wasn't like this when you talked to them," Naru said, stepping up to him and straightening said tie. He laughed sheepishly. "I got it caught in the subway door." "Jeez, you need to be more careful. And why didn't you leave your briefcase in a locker at the station?" "I was in a hurry. I couldn't wait to see your pretty face again." She smiled. The only reason she didn't hit him was she knew it wasn't just a line. "Well, the lockers at the mall are usually full, but maybe we'll get lucky." They did get lucky. After locking away his briefcase, Umino treated her to a tai-yaki, something she hadn't had in a while. They walked slowly down the covered sidewalk, stopping whenever Naru found something interesting in a window. "Umino, do you figure my mom would like this?" she asked, pointing to a silk scarf. Umino looked closely. "I don't know, silk isn't very warm, is it?" "I mean the *colour*, silly." "Well, I know it would look good on you, so I guess it would be okay for her." She sighed. "You're no help." "Sorry. Your mom is pretty hard to shop for." "Yeah, you got that right." She took another bite out of the fish- shaped pancake, minding the hot filling. Her mother owned an upscale jewellery store, so it would be an understatement to call her tastes refined. Always made picking a Christmas present interesting. She shivered. "Boy, winter's really setting in. Are you sure you're okay with just that topcoat?" "Sure. That run from the station warmed me up fine." She noticed he'd buttoned up his coat, though. Now that he was in the corporate world, she'd managed to get him to change his look considerably. And not just the way he dressed. The unruly mop of dark brown hair he'd kept through high school had finally been tamed, after a fashion. Another thing that had helped was that last year he got the eye operation to mitigate his severe nearsightedness. He still wore glasses when out of doors, but the little round wire-frame glasses were a far cry from the coke-bottle bottoms he had to wear before. They no longer distorted his eyes. Which was nice, because Naru really liked his kind, intelligent eyes. They continued walking. Naru finished off her taiyaki. "I've been thinking about what to get Usagi. I think I'd like to get something for both her and Mamoru this year." "That sounds appropriate." "How about a set of wine glasses? I mean, really nice ones that they can use when it's just the two of them." "Sure. If we see a glassware shop or something, let's have a look. Naru-chan, have you seen Usagi at all since the wedding?" "No." They walked in silence for a while. Umino took hold of her arm gently, bringing them to a halt. "Naru-chan, why don't we stop here for a hot chocolate?" "You want to sit down so soon?" "Maybe it will cheer you up." She returned his smile. Naturally, she hadn't been able to hide how she was feeling. Umino was nothing if not a close observer. They walked into the cafe and ordered. After letting the warm air and the hot drinks warm them up a bit, Umino finally asked what was bothering her. "Umino ... I think Usagi is lying to me again. I mean, about what's going on with her and the others." "How do you mean?" Umino didn't need to ask who she was referring to. "I can't help feeling it's all connected, all the things that have been happening. I went to visit Makoto last week." "You never told me." "I didn't even tell Usagi. I had a close look at her chart while I was in there. Usagi said she's been there for five weeks. It's been eight weeks exactly." Umino frowned. "Why would she ..." His voice trailed off as realization hit him. "That would be just when Hikawa shrine burned down." Naru nodded. "And did you see Ami at the funeral? She said it was just a sprained ankle. But I could tell she was in a lot of pain. And not just in her ankle, the way she was moving. I think she was badly hurt." "Naru, do you think they were there? I mean, when the shrine burned down?" "That's got to be it. And I know Minako was there too. She's about the only one who isn't lying about it. And Usagi has sounded really depressed when we've talked on the phone. I know she must be worrying about poor Makoto, and she's still taking care of Rei. But I don't think it's just that. Umino, I really feel like something awful is happening." "I'm sure she'll fix everything. She always does." Naru smiled sadly. "That's very sweet, but you don't need to pretend. I know you don't really believe it." He fidgeted under her gaze, embarrassed at having been seen through so easily. "I guess I find it kind of hard to picture. I mean, Usagi's even clumsier than me." Naru's eyes narrowed, and her smile grew into a sly grin. "Well, you seem to lose your clumsiness whenever I properly motivate you." "Naru-chan ..." He was really squirming now. She didn't feel like talking about this anymore right now. It wasn't often they could spend a whole evening together, she wanted to make the most of it. "Thanks Umino, this really hit the spot. Let's go do some more shopping." They left the cafe and continued on their way. "Umino, look. There's a china shop up ahead, they may have glassware too. Come on." She took his hand, and sped up the pace a bit. She moved aside to pass a woman who was walking very slowly. The woman suddenly staggered, bumping into Naru. "Oh. I'm terribly sorry," Naru said. The woman looked at her vacantly. Her dirty overcoat was open. Even with just her face and neck exposed, she looked emaciated. And suddenly her eyes went wide and the cords in her neck all stood out. Naru frowned. "Um ... are you okay? Hey ...!" Naru moved quickly, catching the woman by the arm before she could fall. She was even lighter than Naru would have thought. A second later, Umino had her other arm. They managed to keep her on her feet. "Miss, are you hurt?" Umino asked. "No." It was just an automatic answer, like she was barely aware of what was going on. "Maybe you should go sit down," Naru suggested. "No." She looked a bit steadier now, so Naru cautiously let go of her arm. Umino did likewise. "I'm really sorry," Naru said to her. "I shouldn't have been in such a hurry." She had thought maybe the woman was drunk. But it looked more like she was just tired and hungry. "Listen, can we get you something? I mean, something to eat maybe?" "No. I have to go find more." The woman simply started walking slowly on her way again. Naru was about to call out to her again, then thought better of it. She probably wouldn't respond. "Well, that was weird," Umino said. "Poor thing. She looked half starved." "Probably homeless. There's a lot more these days." Naru turned away from the retreating woman, looked back to Umino. "What did she mean, she needs to find more?" "Maybe she's a drug addict." "I don't know. Her eyes were ..." "What?" Naru just shook her head. "Nothing. Come on, let's go." They headed for the china shop at a more leisurely pace. Naru just couldn't get the picture of the woman's eyes out of her head. It must have been a weird trick of the light or something. People's eyes just didn't glow like that. ***** **Yui express air, at your service.** Hitomi looked around the alley Yui had just teleported them into. The coast was clear. **You've been here before?** **Once, about a year ago. I found a shop I like, so I made sure to image an alley nearby.** Yui pointed. **The mall is just over there.** **You 'ported us here just basis that? Man, you're getting good.** Yui grinned. **I've been getting lots of practice lately.** **Yeah, but this is our first hit. Come on, let's get over there.** Sure enough, there was a gate leading into an outdoor mall with a walkway covered by an arched glass ceiling. They walked in and started looking. This was almost certainly where the image had been sent from. Of course the image of the girl's face had been front and centre, but the periphery seemed to indicate some sort of mall. It had just been a couple of minutes ago, so the girl was probably still here. She wasn't expecting to see the black sheep. She would probably have moved on, driven by the compulsion Hitomi had implanted. Hitomi recognized the girl the instant she spotted her. **Yui, I got her. In the china shop over there.** Yui looked over to where she had pointed. **The one with the guy?** **Yeah.** **So what should we do?** **We'll just wait here. When she comes out, I want to get a better look at her.** **Okay.** Yui walked over and leaned on a signpost. Suddenly she grinned. **Hey 'Tomi. Looks like you've got a fan club.** Hitomi turned towards where Yui had inclined her head. Three girls in school uniforms were pointing and giggling. **What the hell is their problem?** **Might have something to do with the dove on your shoulder, 'Tomi.** Yes, that was probably it. But still, it was annoying. Hitomi stared down the three girls, concentrating hard. Their smiles faded, their faces became expressionless. Hitomi beckoned them to approach. Slowly, they walked over to her. All three of them stared vacantly into her eyes. "Listen closely. You all love chocolate and suddenly you want to eat as much as you possibly can. You are going to go to that confection shop over there, and you are going to order every kind of chocolate they have and you're going to eat it. You're going to keep on buying and eating chocolate until you either run out of money or become violently ill. Do you understand?" "Yes," they all said in unison. They turned and walked towards the shop Hitomi had indicated, gradually picking up the pace. By the time they were there they were running. Even from here, Hitomi could hear them all trying to shout out their orders at once to a very bewildered shopkeeper. **That was a good one, 'Tomi.** Yui must have picked up the echo of the telepathic message Hitomi was sending out. She really was getting good. After a few more minutes, the couple came out of the shop. Hitomi got a really good look at the girl. When they had passed by, she held out her hand and the dove hopped onto her finger. Hitomi locked eyes with the dove for a few seconds. She flicked her hand, and the dove took to the air. It flew over to a shop sign and landed there. Hitomi watched for a minute to make sure it was following the couple. She still had a good contact with it. **Okay, I think we're set.** **Should we follow too?** Yui asked. **Not until they leave the mall. As long as they're within about a klick we're fine.** Yui peered through the crowd. **Looks like they're window shopping again. They'll probably be here a while.** **Then we might as well relax. How about a coffee?** They sat down at a coffee shop and Hitomi ordered for the two of them. Without even thinking she scanned the room with her inner eye, probing for anybody who was paying them any attention, or for anybody whose aura stood out. The black sheep they needed to avoid usually announced their presence from a long ways away, gave them plenty of time to leave their territory. But now they had to watch out for any Ancients still loyal to the Matriarch. Had to make sure they had at least enough warning for Yui to teleport them out if needs be. Less urgent but also important to watch out for were any animals who were paying attention to them. Sometimes one of them would become unnerved by the sight of people sitting in apparent silence, yet reacting to each other as if they were talking. Usually all it took was the right look from Hitomi to convince them that they really wanted to be looking elsewhere. **So you figure she's a Sailor Senshi?** Yui asked. **Could be. That's why we're being cautious. So how did she strike you?** **Her aura had a lot of depth to it. It was pretty subtle, nothing that leapt out at me. Of course that Hino bitch didn't strike me as much either.** Hitomi didn't add "until you tried taking her soul." It was still a sore point with Yui, how they got trounced by those Sailor Senshi. She suspected Shoji was leveraging her desire for payback to get her cooperation in this little venture. She also had an idea what else Shoji would be wanting Yui to do ... and that he hadn't told her about it yet. But it was his pet project, she was content to just come along for the ride. The risk was minimal, and the payback could be spectacular. And it was fun. **Well, I guess we'll be finding out what this one's made of soon enough. Shoji will be pleased.** Yui grinned. **I'll give her soul to Senpai as a Christmas present. Then he can go make grandma Himiko lick his ass.** Hitomi just smiled. A bargaining chip? Well, maybe. She suspected he had something else in mind. Either way, it would be interesting. **I was just thinking,** Yui said. **If we don't give her soul back, what do you think will happen to her?** **I've heard rumours about that happening,** Hitomi said. **Supposedly some of the black sheep have done that, sending their souls off to the next world then keeping the living body as a slave. They say you can teach them to more or less take care of themselves. But they just sit there unless you implant some suggestion. You might even be able to get them to do pretty complicated things. Talking to people, going to get things for you or whatever.** **Cool.** Every so often, Hitomi would close her eyes and concentrate, seeing through the dove's eyes. After a while, she saw that their target had left the mall. Not feeling like wasting time with mind tricks, Hitomi just payed the bill and they were on their way. They caught up and followed at a discrete distance. Hitomi had been worried about what sort of ESP the Senshi might have, whether they might be able to detect paranormals. But the couple seemed to be just continuing with their Christmas shopping, oblivious to the observation they were under. It looked like they would lead their pursuers all the way home without even knowing it. After that, she and Yui could go back to the house and they could all start planning the next phase. And this time they'd make sure they didn't get caught with their pants down. End Chapter 10 --------------2DB66EEA775A-- From - Wed Jan 07 23:55:42 1998 Return-Path: Received: from smtp28.bellglobal.com (smtp28.bellglobal.com [204.101.251.58]) by pop50.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id VAA24491 for ; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:08:53 -0500 (EST) Received: from access.mbnet.mb.ca (root@access.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.11]) by smtp28.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id VAA01302 for ; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:08:50 -0500 (EST) Received: from ts8m-11.mbnet.mb.ca (ts8m-11.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.142]) by access.mbnet.mb.ca (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id UAA23732; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 20:08:18 -0600 (CST) Message-ID: <34B45F83.41CF@mbnet.mb.ca> Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 21:09:23 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Win16; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 11] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------19FB4843113A" X-UIDL: 1caca8b08e5602a61cbdf15da7fa2ffc X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: 25796 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------19FB4843113A Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com --------------19FB4843113A Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; name="SECRET11.TXT" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SECRET11.TXT" Secrets Chapter 11 - Stakeout As Naru topped the fourth flight of stairs, she decided that she really didn't need to feel guilty about skipping aerobics this week. With her backpack full of books and the two shopping bags, this was about as much of a workout as she could ask for. And she'd arrived on a later train, too late for the nearer inconvenience store to be open. It seemed she was having dinner later and later these days. She opened up the apartment, deposited the groceries in the kitchen and went to collapse in her favourite chair. Umino should have been home by now. This wasn't a good sign. Best get it over with. She reached over to the speaker phone and hit the autodial button that would call their voice mail system. A woman's recorded voice announced that they had a waiting message. "Hi, Naru-chan! It's me. I'm really sorry, but this client I just signed off with introduced me to a colleague of his who wants to hire me. We're going out for drinks to talk about it, so I probably won't be home until after midnight. Don't wait up for me, I know you've got classes tomorrow. Save what you got for dinner and we'll have some of it for breakfast tomorrow, okay? Love you. Bye." The disturbingly chirpy woman's voice came back asking if she wanted to reply to the message. She just hit the number to delete and disconnect. She slouched down further and groaned. A long time ago she had promised herself that she would not get mad. They had talked about this at great length, they both knew how things were likely to be for the next couple of years. Even though she had to struggle to keep her grades where they needed to be, even though she was pushing herself night and day, she was determined to see it through. She had gotten a taste of what a nursing career would mean for her, of the difficulties she would encounter. It had just convinced her all the more that she had found her calling. For all that, it was Umino who was working the late nights. She still only had a vague idea of what it was he did. He helped fix computer programs so that they would still work after the year 2000. She had wondered just how much of a future there could be in that sort of work. After all, how many programmers could be stupid enough to write programs that would stop working at the end of the century? Quite a few, it would seem. After not much more than a year, he already had to turn clients down. And the fees were just skyrocketing, as clients became more desperate to beat the millennium deadline. By next year he could probably name his fee. They were already saving enough money that Naru had started playing the stock market. Maybe Umino was right. Maybe just a couple of years from now they really could pay up front for a house. Then she could start her career in earnest, his work could settle down to a more sedate pace and they could start relaxing together a lot more. At least that was the theory. But right now there were two bags of groceries that needed to go into the freezer or the refrigerator. She really didn't feel like making the elaborate meal they had planned, not just for herself. She would just microwave something. But first she'd go check how their portfolio was doing. At the rate Umino was raking it in, she needed to give more and more thought to their investments. When she walked up to the computer, she noticed the change right away. She giggled. "The little sneak." He must have had that film developed just yesterday. It was only two days ago they had come across a truly spectacular Christmas tree in a department store, and Umino had gotten somebody to take a picture of them in front of it. He was forever doing that. And forever having those pictures expanded so that he could put them in the frame sitting on the desk beside the computer. No picture ever lasted more than a couple of weeks there. It was a nice reminder that however busy they were, however little time they managed to have together, he always managed to somehow make it special for her. The computer was always on, so she just entered the screen saver password and clicked on the icon that logged on to the network. It didn't take her long to convince herself their money was doing fine. She went back to the kitchen, got the groceries put away and picked out what she would eat tonight. She was about to set the microwave when the doorbell rang. She walked to the door and bent to peer through the peephole. A young man in a leather jacket and a baseball cap worn backwards. She didn't recognize him. She pressed the talk button on the intercom. "Can I help you?" He started saying something, but she wasn't paying attention. It may have been the shadow and the little popping sound, or it may have been something else, but something was screaming at her that she was no longer alone. She whirled around. The short girl and the man with the wild eyes seemed mildly surprised that she had found them out. Her breath came in as a gasp. "Help me!" she screamed. That's what you were supposed to do, maybe they'd panic and run instead of having their fun with her. The man reached out to her and she went down like a sack of potatoes. The pain went away in an instant. She was numb and dizzy, utterly paralyzed and barely able to think. She was aware of what was going on, but somehow it all seemed so far away. The man stepped over her and opened the door. The first man came in. Somebody else followed him in and closed the door. A woman. None of them said anything. They just stood around her. And then there was pain again. It was excruciating, like a part of her was being savagely ripped out. She felt surely they were dismembering her, but she couldn't figure out where it hurt,where they were hurting her. Then suddenly she knew why. She was having an out of body experience. *Oh God, they've killed me.* She didn't exactly see it, but she was aware of her body lying limp below her. She was just a little disembodied consciousness, floating in the air. She didn't exactly hear them, but she was aware of the people around her talking to each other. They seemed to be talking about her. She was being judged. She got the vague impression that she had been found wanting. Then she had a sensation of falling. She must have blacked out because there was no memory of their having left. They were just gone. She had no idea how long she lay there. She had the impression that she could move again if she wanted to, but was not inclined to do so. Even when the phone rang about a dozen times, she just lay there. It didn't really matter who it was, there were more important things she needed to think about. Like who she was and where she was, like what had just happened and why she was lying here. There were simple answers to all those questions, or at least there should be. But there were things in her head, strange things that seemed to contradict those simple answers. Images and memories that made no sense. To keep from losing her grip, she started reciting a mantra in her head, over and over. My name is Naru. I am lying on the floor of my apartment. Four people just attacked me and left me here. I'm in Tokyo. It's December. While she was reciting the mantra, trying to convince herself that it was all true, the phone rang again, even longer this time. Then the doorbell rang. Then insistent knocking, and a woman's voice from outside. It was distracting. The door opened. She actually availed herself of her ability to move, lifting her head and looking up at who came through the door. Suddenly, she wasn't so confused anymore. "Umino ..." "Naru-chan!" He dropped down to his knees beside her, put an arm behind her shoulders and gently cradled her head in his other hand. He looked like he badly wanted to be hysterical. "Are you hurt?" he asked, his voice only breaking into a squeak just at the end. "No. I'm okay. Just tired." She became aware of another presence. A woman who had entered after Umino. She stepped around Naru and crouched down beside her. She looked vaguely familiar. "I'm Lieutenant Saori Nagashima from Metro Police. Did somebody attack you?" She really didn't want to talk about it, she just wanted Umino to hold her. But she was too weary and disoriented to argue, it was simpler to just answer plainly. "Four people." "Oh God," Umino whimpered. "Did they hurt you?" "They didn't even touch me. I ... I'm not sure what happened." "Did they say anything to you?" Saori asked. Naru finally placed her. At Usagi's wedding. She had been talking about temples or something. "No. They didn't say anything." "How did they get in?" Umino asked. He was only half asking her. He was obsessive about the security of their home, always worried about whether she was safe. She could see his mind working, wondering what more he could have done. She wished she had an answer for him. "I don't know." "Maybe we should get her onto the couch," Saori suggested. "Can you get up?" Umino asked. "Yes." They both helped her. She was more or less steady on her feet, but still grateful for the help. Umino arranged the cushions for her and she stretched out. Umino knelt beside her, holding her hand in both of his. He was actually shaking. She wished she could just tell him that everything was okay. But she knew it was not okay. "Umino-san, perhaps you should get her a glass of water," Saori suggested. He seemed deathly afraid of letting her out of his sight for even a minute. Naru smiled and nodded. *I won't disappear.* That seemed to calm him a bit. He went to the kitchen. Saori sat down in a chair close to Naru. "Naru-san," she said in a very soft voice. "These people, do you remember what they did?" Naru knew what she was asking, but was at a loss how to answer. "I'm sure they didn't touch me. I felt ... pain, in my head, and suddenly I couldn't move. For a while I just felt ... strange, like I was dreaming. Then I was just lying there." "How do you feel now?" "Still a little dizzy." And still very confused. But that part was too difficult to even try and explain. Then something occurred to her. "How did you know I was in trouble?" "I answered a call from your alarm." "The alarm?" She knew about the alarm system run off their computer, with a link to the police network. "But I didn't have time to set it off." "It's voice activated," Umino said. He had just come back with her water. She scooted up a bit, and took it from him. "It set my pager off too. I called here but there was no answer, so I got a taxi." Naru finished about half the water. "Voice activated?" "That's why I told you to shout as loud as you could if you were in trouble," Umino said. "If you yell 'help me' or a few other phrases really loud, it sets off the alarm." "When did you do that?" Naru asked. He fidgeted a bit. "Uh ... a while ago. I didn't want to tell you, I didn't think you'd like the idea." So that was why he had always been going on about what to do if she was in trouble. She squeezed his hand. "Umino ... you're so sweet. Always thinking about me." He laughed nervously. Umino was never keen on public displays of affection. The phone rang, saving him from having to respond. He picked up the receiver. "Hello? ... Hi Ami-san ... I know. Some people broke into the apartment ... we're both fine. Naru was here, but she isn't hurt ... No, I'm not sure ... She's on her way? That's great ... Yes, the police are already here ... Yes ... Thanks for calling, I really appreciate it ... Bye." He hung up. "That was Ami. She says Usagi's on her way." He saw that she was confused. "Uh ... I set up the alarm to send Ami high priority email when the alarm goes off. She has a system set up that notifies her immediately if that happens, a prototype palmtop or something. A long time ago I asked her to call here if she ever got that email, and to call Usagi. Ami said she called earlier, but there was no answer. That's when she called Usagi." It was all fitting into place, why Umino was doing these things, why he hadn't wanted to tell her about it. She was overcome with dread. "Oh Umino, I knew it, something awful is happening. It's all happening again." "It's okay," Umino said, cradling her hand. "You're safe now." She resisted the urge to cry out that she would never be safe. She had allowed herself to think that it was all over, the madness that had not plagued her since her middle school years. But the monsters were back again. They were after her again. She wanted to scream. "Usagi will be here soon," Umino said. "You'll feel better then." She managed to smile. He meant that she would feel safer then. Even if he didn't believe, he never questioned her own belief in her guardian angel. Yes, she would feel safer then. "It's so nice of her to come. We should make something for her." "Okay," Umino said. "You just relax, I'll go make some tea and something to eat. Saori-san, would you like some oolong tea?" "Yes, thank you." Umino went into the kitchen again. Saori stood up. "Excuse me, but I need to report in. I'll just use my cellular." "You can go into the next room if you like." Saori smiled. "Okay. You try to get some rest." Naru just closed her eyes, and listened to the barely audible sounds of Saori's voice and Umino moving around in the kitchen. It wasn't as disorienting as before, but the strange images still haunted her. It was like there was a whole bunch of things she was supposed to remember but couldn't. She traced her strong memories back, the ones she was confident about, trying to see if there were any gaps. She felt like there should be, but there weren't. Saori came back into the room. "Naru, two of my colleagues are on their way here. When they arrive, we'd like to ask you a few questions. Would that be okay?" "Sure." Naru was feeling a bit better now. She swung her feet down off the couch and sat up. "I doubt there's much I could tell you, other than describing the people." "That's a start. Naru, do you mind if I ask you something?" "Go ahead." "You said something that suggested this isn't the first time you were attacked." Naru sighed. She'd never really talked to anybody about it. She didn't want to put Usagi on the spot, and she didn't want to worry Umino. And there simply had been nobody else. After a while she had tried to just forget. But now it was happening again. Maybe it was time to talk. "It was a long time ago, more than five years. The first time was at my mother's shop." "The O-SAP jewellery store." Naru gasped. "How did you know about that?" "I've read about the case. Everyone in the store was knocked out, including you and your mother. Nobody knows why. You told the police that an old hag had tried to strangle you and you blacked out." "That's right," Naru said hesitantly. Saori smiled warmly. "I'm sorry, I guess I should explain. The reason I know so much is I've been carefully reviewing a series of old cases, including the two you were involved in. The second being at Lovers' Park. I'm looking for possible connections with a case I'm working on now." "You mean the temples being destroyed!" She managed to keep her voice down, she didn't want to bring Umino running in a panic. "You were talking about it at Usagi's wedding." Saori looked mildly surprised. "Ah, so that's it. I thought we had met before." All Naru could think about was Rei's grandfather, Ami limping at his funeral, Makoto lying in a coma. The feeling of dread settled down on her again. "My God, do you think the people who attacked me are involved with that?" "I don't know. Frankly we have very few leads. We only know that the people demolishing the shrines have a very unusual method of operation. That's why I was looking into old unsolved cases that were unusual in one way or another. There are quite a few in the Juban area. Like I said, your name came up twice. If this incident hadn't happened, it's likely I would have been here sometime soon anyway, to ask you whether there was anything else you could tell us. When I looked up your name, I found out that your alarm system was registered with us. On a hunch, I arranged to be notified if your alarm was triggered." Naru frowned. "Saori-san, are you supposed to be telling me all this? I mean, it doesn't seem normal." "Yes, it is rather irregular. But a good friend of mine has vouched for you. And it's a very irregular case to begin with. I'm willing to pursue any lead." "I hope I can help you," Naru said, meaning it. But she wondered just what the police could do against monsters. There was only one person she felt could protect her. But she couldn't say that. Umino came in with the tea on a tray. "Naru-chan, you should be lying down," he scolded gently. She smiled. "I'm feeling a lot better now." "Well, if you say so." He set the tray down on the coffee table. "I put some food together too, I'll bring it in later." "Thank you," Saori said. "Umino-san, I wonder if I can impose upon you. I'd like you to check your windows and see that they're locked and haven't been forced. And I'd like you to look around and see if anything obvious is missing." "Okay. I'll be right back." He went over to the sliding glass doors that led out to the balcony and started doing as he had been asked. Saori accepted the cup of tea Naru handed her. "Thank you. Your husband is very conscientious about keeping you safe. He's taken extraordinary precautions." Naru nodded. "He worries about me a lot. He was with me at Lovers' Park, when I was attacked there." She smiled. "We'd just won a contest. It was supposed to prove how strong our love is. Not that I need any more proof." "He must put a lot of faith in your two friends, asking them to look out for you like that." "You mean Usagi and Ami? Yeah, they're good friends of mine." "Mamoru has told me what an extraordinary person Usagi is. I've know him since childhood, for him to lavish praise on somebody like that is unheard of." "Usagi is very special." Naru was feeling uncomfortable. She would have to lie about what she knew. But Saori was probably an expert at seeing through lies. "I've only met her a couple of times, but I'd have to agree. Did she help you out before? I mean, when you were attacked?" "Sort of." Naru really didn't want to talk about this. "I lost a good friend once. She helped me get over it." "I see." Somehow, Naru got the impression that wasn't the answer Saori was looking for. But she didn't pursue the matter. Instead, she just asked a few general questions about Naru and her husband. What they did for a living, how long they'd been married and so on. Her manner was casual, but she listened intently. It was hard to tell whether her questions were just friendly or whether she was fishing for some useful information. The doorbell rang. "I'll get it!" Umino called from the bedroom. He walked quickly over to the door. Naru saw him bend to peer into the peephole. He turned around and announced that it was Usagi even before he opened the door. Naru got up and walked closer to the door. Usagi caught sight of her. "Naru-chan!" She was out of her shoes in a second. Umino barely had time to step aside as she came running. Naru caught her in her arms and they held each other tightly. "Naru-chan, I was so worried. Are you okay?" "Yes, I'm fine." They just held each other for a while. Naru felt much as she had when she first saw Umino stepped through the door. She felt that maybe, just maybe, everything would be okay now. Usagi stepped back and smiled, her blue eyes showing anxiety, but also relief. Then her gaze shifted and she looked puzzled. "Saori-san." Naru turned to see that Saori was standing beside them now. "Hello Usagi." "How did you ... oh right. Ami said the police were here." "Come on and sit down," Naru said, steering Usagi over to the couch. As soon as they sat down, Usagi took her hand. "Naru-chan, can you tell me what happened.?" "I'm not too sure. There were suddenly these people in the apartment. They didn't touch me or anything, but suddenly I was lying on the ground and I was really dizzy. Then they were just gone." "What people?" "Four of them," Saori said before Naru could answer. "When Naru's feeling a little better, we'll get a description of them." "Oh, I forgot!" Umino exclaimed, surprising all of them. He slapped his forehead. "I'm so stupid!" "Umino, what's wrong?" Naru asked. He made an effort to calm himself, forced a smile. "Sorry Naru-chan, I didn't mean to startle you." He turned to Saori. "I probably have them on camera. There's a hidden camera covering the entrance hallway. It's on a continuous loop, but I've got it set to store the images permanently if the alarm goes off. I was just testing it out, but I'm sure I left it on." "Is that what you were working on last week?" Naru asked. She had come home to see him fiddling with the security system, adding things she'd never seen before. "Yeah. I'd completely forgotten about that." "Umino-san, can you show me those images?" Saori asked. "Sure," Umino said. "I can print off hardcopy or transmit still images, whatever you want." "Why don't we go have a look first?" "The computer's in the next room." "I'll stay here with Naru," Usagi said, putting an arm around her. "You two go ahead." Saori nodded. Naru was relieved. She really didn't want to look at those pictures right now. Maybe never. She was afraid of what she might see. Umino led Saori into the spare room, and Saori closed the door behind her. Naru turned to meet Usagi's eyes, still holding her hand. Usagi smiled, but her eyes were still full of worry. "Naru, if you don't mind talking about it, can you tell me what happened?" "I'm not sure. There was somebody at the door and I went to answer it. Then suddenly there were just these two people behind me, like they appeared out of nowhere. They knocked me down or something, but they didn't even touch me. I just couldn't move. Then ... I don't know, it was like an out of body experience, it was like I was looking down at my own body." She saw it in Usagi's face. It might as well have been a telepathic message, or words written across her forehead. *Oh no, it was them.* It was as clear as day. Naru fought the urge to just blurt out the question. A long time ago she had promised that she would never ask. Usagi had to say it herself, that was the only way. Right now, she was just waiting patiently for Naru to continue. "Then I fell asleep or something. I woke up on the floor and they were gone. That's all." "Naru-chan, do you feel okay now? I know you're scared, but do you feel sick or anything?" It was a while before Naru could collect her thoughts, try to find some words to explain. "Usagi, it feels like they put something in my head. It's like I have memories of places I've never been." "What sort of places?" She knew it would sound ridiculous, but she so desperately wanted to tell somebody. Even if she couldn't say anything, maybe Usagi would understand. "It's a strange place. It's like a big, beautiful palace, more beautiful than the Taj Mahal. There's a big garden all around it, but the horizon is all rocks and sand, like a desert. The sun is in the sky, but the sky is dark and there are stars too. And ... I know it's silly, but it's like the Earth is up in the sky too." "As if you were on the moon?" It was like pieces of a jigsaw suddenly coming together of their own free will. "Yes, that's it! Usagi, what does it mean?" She regretted asking it immediately. But she had been so desperate, she couldn't help it. Usagi's expression was unreadable. "Naru-chan, if you're asking me this, then you must know about who I am." *I won't say it. I promised I wouldn't say it.* "What do you mean?" "I mean, about me being Sailor Moon." Naru's heart was racing. After several seconds, she just nodded. Usagi looked to be fighting back tears. "You've kept it a secret all these years, haven't you?" she asked softly. Naru could no longer meet her gaze. She looked down at their joined hands. "Not quite. I've told Umino. I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't have. I don't think he believed me anyway. I hope you're not mad at me." Usagi nearly knocked her over. Her embrace was actually painful. Suddenly Naru had a long golden pigtail tickling her face. It was an effort not to sneeze. "I'm sorry," Usagi breathed. "I'm so sorry. I should have done this years ago. I should have just told you. I should have trusted you." When Usagi's grip loosened enough for her to draw breathe again, Naru gently returned her embrace. "It's okay, Usagi. I know why you didn't. You were just protecting me. Just like you always did. Just like you protect all of us." She felt Usagi shake her head. "No, I was just a coward. I just kept delaying it. I knew it would drive us apart, but I still let it happen. Then I told myself there was nothing I could do about it. I'm sorry, I was such a coward." Naru hated hearing Usagi talk like this. It sounded like she was near shedding tears, and Naru had always hated seeing her cry. She tried to think of some way to tell Usagi that it was okay. But she'd already told her why it was okay. Then she remembered all the times from their childhood when Usagi had cried, and Naru had learned how she could make her stop. Usagi was grown up now, but she was still the same person. She was easily distracted. Yes, that was it. Get her thinking about something. "Usagi, can I ask you something?" Usagi let go of her and discretely took a second to dry her eyes, probably hoping Naru wouldn't realize. She moved away. "Yes?" Her cheek was still wet, she hadn't done a very good job. "Can you tell me who else knows? I mean, so that I don't tell the wrong person. Does your family know?" "No. Besides Mamo-chan and the other Sailor Senshi, there are only a couple of people who know. Naru-chan, you know who the other Senshi are, don't you?" "I've suspected they were your friends." From the look on Usagi's face, Naru feared that somehow she had said the wrong thing. "Yes, that's right," she said tonelessly. Naru realized what it was she had said. She cursed herself. "Usagi, it's okay, really. I never stopped being your friend, I knew there had to be a good reason you weren't telling me about being Sailor Moon. I mean, If it's something you couldn't even tell your families then how could I expect ... oh damn it, I'm saying all the wrong things!" She gripped Usagi firmly by the shoulders. "Usagi, it's not worth crying about, so don't cry. That's an order!" Usagi looked utterly dumbfounded. She hadn't heard those words from Naru in at least ten years. That had always been Naru's last resort for getting Usagi to stop crying. Sometimes it had even worked. Usagi smiled. "If you get me an ice cream, I promise not to cry." "You haven't changed a bit, have you?" "Nope." "Fine." Naru stood up. "When I get back here, I expect to see a happy face. Deal?" "Deal." Naru went into the kitchen, and took just a minute to add a little dish of ice cream to the food tray Umino had put together there. She brought the tray back to the living room. As she had promised, Usagi was smiling now. "I thought I was supposed to come here to make you feel better," Usagi said sheepishly. "You did," Naru said. She put the tray down on the coffee table. "Today you gave me the nicest gift I could ever ask for." "Naru-" "Better late than never, I always say. Now eat up." Usagi gave up on whatever she was about to say and just ate a spoonful of her ice cream. "Mmm. Thanks, Naru-chan, this is great." "My pleasure." Usagi still got that same look on her face when she ate chocolate ice cream, like it was a profound spiritual experience. Since she could not conceive of Usagi crying while eating ice cream, maybe this was the time to ask a difficult question. "Usagi, I went to visit Makoto a few days ago." Usagi actually smiled. "That was nice of you. Did you talk to her?" She made it sound like the most normal thing she could ask. "Yes, I did." It was the truth, too. But she had only done it out of a feeling of obligation, with no expectation that it had done any good. She felt bad about that, faced with Usagi's unshakable faith. "I'm sure she was really happy to hear your voice." "Usagi ..." *No. This is not the time.* "She was hurt when Hikawa shrine burned down wasn't she?" "Yes. She was trying to protect Rei. The same people who attacked you attacked Rei that night." Which meant they killed those people, and hurt Ami too. "Usagi ... who are they? What do they want?" Usagi put down her ice cream bowl, already done with it. Her expression hardened in a way Naru had never seen. It was frightening. "They're monsters. They look human, but they're uglier than the monsters you saw me fight all those years ago. They're trying to steal human souls." Naru got a sick feeling in her stomach. "Usagi, do you think they ... *took* something from me? Is that why I've been feeling so strange?" Usagi raised her hand, shook her head. "No no, they couldn't have. I think they're after just us. They must have thought you were a Sailor Senshi." "Why would they think that?" "I'm not sure. All I know is, you came from the same place we did." Naru gasped. "You mean that palace." Usagi nodded. "Yes. It's called the Moon Kingdom. It existed a very long time ago. I lived there in a previous life. So did Mamo-chan, and so did the other Sailor Senshi. It looks like you lived there too." Naru frowned. "Are you saying we were all reincarnated?" "Yes." Usagi smiled. "I was married to Mamo-chan back then, too. Well, I think we were engaged to be married anyway. I was called Princess Serenity and he was called Prince Endymion." Naru tried to take this all in, tried to make sense of it. "Am I just starting to remember my past life? Is that it?" "I'm not sure. We've met one person who suddenly remembered bits of his past life when he was attacked by the first monster I ever fought. Maybe the same thing happened to you. You might remember more over time, but I don't know. Most of us don't remember much, except our names and how we ... how the Moon Kingdom was destroyed." Naru wanted to ask more about that, but suddenly something else occurred to her. "Usagi, am I going to become like you?" Usagi took a second to figure out what she was asking. "You mean a Sailor Senshi?" She sounded surprised by the suggestion. "No, I don't think so. I mean, all the Sailor Senshi we know about are accounted for. One for each planet. And we all awakened when we were being attacked by a monster. You've been attacked a couple of times, if you were a Senshi you would have awakened by now." She suddenly smiled. "But wouldn't it be cool if we knew each other back in the Moon Kingdom?" "Yeah, it would." Naru answered almost without thinking. She was still trying to take this all in. It was frightening and bewildering, but some things were making more sense now. "Usagi, do you think this is why I've always been attacked by monsters? Was it because they thought I was a Sailor Senshi or something?" "Well, sort of. Most of the monsters who attacked you were hunting for people's souls, for one reason or another. Rei thinks maybe they're attracted to people with old souls. I guess we both qualify. That's why Saori wants to find all the people who've been attacked by monsters, these new enemies may come after them too." Something didn't sound right there. Then Naru was suddenly thinking back to some of the things Saori said. "Usagi," Naru said, suddenly keeping her voice down. Like she shouldn't have been doing that earlier. "Does Saori know about you?" "Yeah, she found out a long time ago. But she just told Mamo-chan that she knows, and I haven't told her that I know that she knows that I ..." she sighed. "I'm sorry, this all gets so confusing sometimes. Yes, she knows." "Who else?" "Ami's boyfriend. The man I told you about, the one who also got back some memories from the Moon Kingdom. Rei's boyfriend knew. A couple of friends of Minako's in England know about her. Oh, and the cats know, of course." Naru frowned. "The cats?" "Yeah. You know, Luna and Artemis." Usagi looked momentarily puzzled by the blank expression she was getting. "They talk." "Talk?" "Yes." She shook her head. "I'm sorry, I'm not explaining this very well. Artemis is the one who told Minako she's Sailor Venus, and Luna is the one who told me that I'm Sailor Moon." "Oh." "Naru-chan, are you okay?" "Uh ... yeah. I was just thinking, I never heard Luna do anything but meow. Is this sort of like Kiki's Delivery Service where only you can understand her?" Usagi laughed out loud. "I'll bet she wishes it was like that. No, she just has to put on the kitty-cat routine when other people are around. We're not quite sure where the cats came from, they say that Queen Serenity put them in cold sleep. Oh, that's my mother. I mean, my mother in the Moon Kingdom." "Usagi?" "Yes?" "I'd sort of like to hear all about this, but ... well, I think this is what Umino would call information overload. I've already got too much to think about." Usagi looked like she wanted to walk across and hold Naru in a motherly embrace again. But she contented herself with just giving Naru a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry, Naru-chan. I guess you're right, it's a lot to take in all at once." Naru decided to focus on more practical considerations. "Usagi, do you think Umino and I should move out of here?" "Gee, you should ask Saori about that. But I doubt it. They didn't take your life force ... that's sort of like your soul. Somehow they must know you're not one of us, so I don't think they'll be coming back." That seemed to make sense. "Umino still may insist on it, though. Do you think the police would put us up somewhere?" Usagi looked at her in an odd way. She hesitated, as if unsure about what she was about to say. "Uh .... Naru-chan, I've been kind of wondering about something." "Yes?" "Well, you've been married for over a year now. Don't you think it's time you stopped calling him Umino?" Naru giggled. "Usagi, even his *mother* calls him Umino!" Usagi looked like she was trying to remember something. "You know, now that you mention it, I don't think I ever knew his given name." Naru giggled again. "It's Gurio. About the only person I ever heard use it was the priest at our wedding." "No wonder." They both laughed. Naru marvelled at how much better she felt, now that the air had been cleared between her and Usagi. She hadn't realized how much she had missed having Usagi as her almost constant companion. Maybe things could be different now. "Usagi, are the other Sailor Senshi going to be mad at you for telling me about all this?" "No. In fact, they'll probably be happy. I've never said anything, but they probably all know I've wanted to do this for a long time. I'm no better at hiding my feelings from them than hiding them from you." Naru was about to agree, but she heard the door to the spare room open. Umino walked out, followed by Saori. Naru's heart sank. Umino really looked shell-shocked. "Umino, is something wrong? You were in there a long time, didn't you get any pictures?" He forced a smile. "Yes, we got the whole thing." He made it sound like he wished he hadn't. The sick feeling of dread returned to her again. She was afraid to ask. "I had him put it on tape," Saori said, holding a video tape in her hand. "You were right, they didn't lay a hand on you." Naru swallowed. "Did you ... does it show what happened?" "Yes. I think you should see it." "I think Naru-chan is tired now," Usagi said. Naru knew what she really meant though. Saori glanced over at Usagi, then back at Naru. "It's up to you, of course. But I think it might ease your mind, seeing exactly what happened." Naru glanced at Umino. He looked more bewildered than shocked. Whatever he had seen had not really disturbed him, just puzzled him. Which for him was sometimes just as bad. "Yes, I'd like to see it." "I'll play it," Umino said. He took the little Hi-8 tape from Saori and walked over to the television. He switched it on and put the tape in their second VCR, right under the TV. Saori went to sit down by Usagi, Umino beside Naru. He took her hand as they all watched. It was a monochrome fish-eye view of the entrance, looking down. The doorbell rang. Naru walked into view, peered through the peephole, then pushed the button on the intercom. Her voice was tinny, barely audible, probably all that the tiny camera's microphone could manage. Naru's heart started racing as the moment approached. They squeezed each other's hands more tightly. They just appeared out of nowhere. Naru turned and screamed. Then she was down. That was all. "I know it hasn't been tampered with," Umino muttered to nobody in particular. "Every frame has an encrypted timestamp encoded in it. They really appeared out of nowhere." The man opened the door for the other two. They all just stood around her, saying nothing. Then the short woman lifted her arms over Naru. Something appeared over her. "Oh my God. Umino, what is that?" Naru breathed. He just shook his head. Naru glanced over at Usagi. A chill went down her spine. It was something she had never seen in her gentle friend's face, something she had never thought to see. Hatred. Cold, venomous hatred. There could be no doubt what she wanted to do with the four people whose image she was watching. She wanted to kill them. Naru shivered, looked back at the television. The woman was still holding the little light motes between her hands. *That's my soul. They wanted to take my soul.* Naru hoped and prayed for what she would see next. Finally, after an eternity, it happened. They had put it back. They had just put it back and left, nothing more. Umino reached for the remote on the coffee table and stopped the tape. They sat in silence for a moment. It was Usagi who finally spoke. In her face there were still hints of what Naru had seen before. "Naru-chan, Umino, Saori. I think it's time I brought this in the open. You all know who I really am, so none of us has to pretend we don't know. I'm going to do everything I can to bring these monsters to justice. I'm going to make sure they can never hurt anybody again." "So it's true," Umino said. "You're ..." Naru-chan nudged him. "It's okay, you can say it." "Sailor Moon ...?" he finished hesitantly. Usagi smiled. "I know it's hard to picture. I'm still a crybaby, even when I'm jumping about in a miniskirt. But with my friends' help, I sometimes manage to do something useful." "Usagi," Saori said. "Now that I can finally say it openly, I want to thank you for saving me all those years ago. I owe you my life, that would be reason enough to offer you all the help I can give. But I've also been tasked with bringing these people to justice. I'm open to suggestions as to how I can help." "Mamo-chan told me about what you're already doing," Usagi said. "You're trying to find all the people around Juban that have been attacked by monsters, right?" "Well, I've been looking into any cases in the city with certain unusual aspects, but yes that's essentially it." "Did Mamo-chan tell you about where we came from?" "You mean your past lives in the Moon Kingdom?" "Right. For a long time Rei-chan has had this theory that a lot of the people who we've had to save from monsters were all reincarnations of people from the Moon Kingdom. They stand out to monsters that are looking for life energy. Naru said she's been having memories of the Moon Kingdom, so I think she's one too." "What?" Umino exclaimed. He looked to Naru. "You never told me about that." "It just started today, Umino," Naru said. "I didn't know what it meant until Usagi explained it." Umino looked stunned. "Are you one of the Sailor Senshi?" Naru sighed. "No, of course not." She was about to add that wasn't something she would be likely to keep from him, but thought better of it. Despite having come clean, that might hit too close to home for Usagi. "Perhaps that's why they took nothing from you," Saori suggested. "Right," Usagi agreed. "I still think it's us they're after, though I'm not sure why. But other monsters we've fought that were looking for specific people had to attack lots of others before they found the right ones. Some people like Naru-chan have been attacked more than once. I don't think it's just coincidence." "Fine." Saori turned to face Naru and Umino. "Everything seems to indicate you're not in any further danger. Nevertheless, I'd like to put your apartment under special surveillance. It would be discrete, but there would be somebody available to help you at a moment's notice. If you're willing, I'd like you to keep us informed of your movements. I don't want to put you under constant personal surveillance, but I'd like to know where you are so that we can at least check up on you on a regular basis." "I think that's a good idea," Umino said. Naru nodded. "That's okay with me. Will you be doing the same for all the other people who have been attacked?" "More than likely." She turned to Usagi. "Mamoru-san told me that one of the Sailor Senshi is in hospital, is that correct?" "Yes. Her name's Makoto. Kino Makoto." "I'd like to arrange permanent protection for her as well." "That sounds okay. Technically you should ask Ami about that, she's the one who speaks for Makoto until she wakes up. It's called a proxy, I think." "If you don't mind my asking, is Ami also one of the Sailor Senshi?" "Yes. She's Mercury." "I imagine you all have ways of taking care of yourselves, but I'm wondering if it wouldn't be prudent to extend police protection to all of you as well." Usagi frowned. "I'd have to talk to them about it. That would mean having police watching our families too." "We could keep it very discrete. I'd still like to ask Ami about protection for Makoto, but I won't take any further action until I hear from you. I'd like you to at least think about it." "We will. And I'll get Ami to call you." Something else occurred to Naru. "Saori-san, my mother was attacked at her jewellery store too, the same time I was." "I know," Saori said. "I'll be paged if her alarm goes off, just like yours. But I'll also go talk to her, arrange surveillance." "She doesn't know about any of this," Naru said. "I don't want to make her worry." "Well, she owns a very upscale jewellery store. I'm sure I can arrange the surveillance on the pretence that we've caught wind of a robbery attempt." The phone rang. Umino picked it up. "Hello?" He just listened for a few seconds. "I see. Can you hang on a minute?" He put his hand over the receiver and looked at Saori. "It's the doorman. There's a Takada-san and a Smith-san at the door. They're claiming to be colleagues of yours, but he wanted to check with you first." Saori smiled. She seemed to be enjoying some private joke. "On the way in I told the doorman I was here to investigate a disturbance. Please assure him that everything is fine, and that it's quite safe to admit my two colleagues." Umino passed that on and hung up. Saori looked around the room. "I'm not sure I should be telling you this, but in addition to being Interpol agents these two are members of an order that specializes in hunting down criminals with unusual powers and techniques. They should be able to help us." "They're the ones who talked to Rei-chan," Usagi said, as if having just made some connection. Saori's smile looked somewhat ironic now. "So they've told me. Of late they've been somewhat more forthcoming with information. Usagi, I haven't told them about you, nor do I intend to. Obviously, that's a choice you'll have to make. All I can say is that, though they have been secretive, I do believe they share our goal of hunting down these criminals." "Do you know anything about this order they're a part of?" Usagi asked. "No, not even its name. They've just alluded to it as a source of some of their information, which appears to be considerable." She turned to Umino and Naru. "Please extend all the cooperation to them that you have to me. Tell them anything that will not compromise Usagi's secret." "I understand," Naru said. She was getting very nervous. This was sounding very cloak and dagger, not at all the way she would expect police to behave. And she was still trying to sort out in her mind the flood of new truths that had been dumped on her. She wasn't good at lying even at the best of times. The doorbell rang, and Saori answered it to confirm it was who they were expecting. She escorted the two men into the living room and made the introductions. Naru was getting even more nervous. They looked and acted like gangsters. Naru was about to ask them if she could take their coats, when Usagi suddenly stood up, getting everybody's attention. Her face showed grim resolve. "Takada-san, Smith-san, my friend Rei has mentioned her meeting with you. She's told me all about you." The man who'd called himself Takada nodded. "I see." His tone implied that what Usagi had said held some special meeting. "So you're a friend of Hino-san. Is she well?" "Yes she is, thank you." Usagi's tone was cordial, but formal. "Since your meeting with her, she's urged me to confide in you. Since I trust her more than anyone I know, that's what I intend to do." "Do you have some information that might help our investigation?" "You could say that." Naru realized what was about to happen just a split second before the room filled with feathers. Umino yelped, and threw his arms protectively around her. She barely noticed, transfixed by the unearthly beauty of the transformation her friend was undergoing. Saori walked over to stand beside the angel who had appeared among them. She looked immensely pleased with herself. "Gentlemen, I'd like you to meet Sailor Moon." Both men took off their shades. Which was good, as far as Naru was concerned. Despite her shock over what had happened, Naru couldn't help thinking that Takada had the most exquisite eyes. And the look on his face said he was slowly coming to accept what those eyes were telling him. He smiled. "I'm very pleased to finally meet you." Sailor Moon was surrounded by shimmering red ribbons, and suddenly she was Usagi again. "Rei tells me you two are part of an order that may be able to help hunt down the people who killed her grandfather." She paid no mind to the transformations she had undergone, as if it had no more significance than removing her hat. "I think we need to talk." Smith discretely cleared his throat. "It's rather late, so perhaps we should get a statement from the eyewitnesses first. I'm sure they'd like to get some rest as quickly as possible." Naru had an idea of what he really meant, but she certainly had no objection. Neither did anybody else. She brought out cushions for her and Umino so that all their guests could sit down in proper chairs. Then they all started talking about teleporting and taking of life force as if they were discussing a burglary. It didn't take all that long. When they were done, Naru realized how tired she was. After confirming that surveillance was already in place, the police excused themselves. Usagi left with them, kissing her goodbye and promising to come visit tomorrow. No doubt they would be going off somewhere to talk about whatever superheroes and secret societies talked about. All Naru wanted now was a long soak in the tub. It was a bit cramped for two, but neither of them minded. ***** Usagi looked at the address printed on the property wall as Mamoru slowly drove by. "Nope, that one's wrong too." "We've been around all the blocks in this district," Rei said from the back seat. "That first one we found was the only right one. That's got to be it." "Shall we go back there?" Mamoru asked. "I guess we'd better," Usagi said. The card that Takada had given her had nothing but his name, cell phone number and an address. He'd said the address was his office, and had invited her to call and make an appointment to meet him there at her convenience. Which was why the three of them were out here this morning. But the only place that matched the address was a big, ornate black steel gate leading onto an enormous walled, wooded property. There was no sign on it except the address numbers. It looked like the grounds of a mansion, they had assumed it must be the wrong place. Mamoru pulled up to the gate. An intercom and camera were discretely hidden under a hood on top of an innocuous looking post. Mamoru's window came down, its electric motor whining. "Your name?" a woman's voice from the intercom said. "Chiba," Mamoru said. "We're looking for Takada and Smith." "Please come in." With a clatter, the iron gates opened very slowly. "Must be the place after all," Usagi said. Her meeting with Takada, Smith and Saori after leaving Naru's place had been fairly short. She'd accepted his invitation to meet at his office, with the understanding that she'd have to meet with the other Sailor Senshi before deciding how closely they should work together. The others had agreed to trust her and Rei with that decision. For now, they were playing it by ear. Mamoru drove them down a winding paved driveway through a pine forest. "You'd hardly think we're in the city anymore," Usagi commented. "There are wards all over the place," Rei commented. "It's been a long time, but they have the same feel as the ones they used in the temple up in Hakone." "So they're really part of the same order?" Mamoru asked. "I'd bet on it." "I see a building up ahead," Usagi said, squinting through the trees. There wasn't much of a clearing, the forest almost came right up to it on all sides. So they were practically right in front of it when Mamoru stopped the car. Rei had to lean forward between the front seats and crane her neck to look up at it. "It looks like a church." Usagi would have to agree. Just like a big, old church. The central hall and the two wings to each side each had steep gable roofs with spires on top and at the corners. The central hall had a massive stone balcony in front supported by pillars. An enormous, tall window with many little panes of clear glass opened onto the balcony. Above that was a great round stained glass rose window, like what you would expect to see in a cathedral. The building was all grey stone with little ornamentation. Usagi thought if they had come at night it would have looked like a haunted house. That is if they could see it at all, there were certainly no apparent sources of light. Right in front of them, looking very innocuous parked just beside the entrance, were two shiny black sedans, and a small green sports car. "That looks like Saori's car," Usagi said, pointing to the latter. She had given Usagi a ride back home that night. "Well, I guess that's where we park." Mamoru drove up beside Saori's car and killed the engine. Usagi got out to let Rei out of the back seat. When they had locked up, Usagi looked up at the tall building again. "I don't see any crucifixes or anything, but it still looks like a church to me. Weird place to have an office." Rei closed her eyes for a moment. "It's definitely a holy site. And it's got wards like nothing I've ever felt before. You know, I'll bet that ESPer bitch couldn't pull the soul out of this place no matter how she tried." "Sounds like they're pretty well equipped," Mamoru commented. "I wonder if there's some reason they want to meet on holy ground," Rei said. "Rei-chan, I think you've been watching too much Highlander." Rei sighed. "I didn't mean it that way. Anyway, let's go." There were two enormous dark wooden doors separated by a stone pier, like the portal to a cathedral. Except each of these had a great brass knocker held in the mouth of a grotesque gargoylish face. There being no other visible means of announcing themselves, Mamoru lifted the massive ring and brought it clanking down on its mooring, once, then again. They waited. After about a minute there was the sound of a massive bolt being thrown from within. The door swung back very slowly. Usagi had been expecting it to creak, in keeping with the atmosphere, but it was perfectly silent. When it had opened a bit more than a meter, a short young woman in a grey blazer and skirt walked into the opening. She had a cute heart- shaped face, sparkling brown eyes and straight black hair cut in a page boy style. She smiled at them. "Can I help you?" "I'm Chiba Mamoru. This is my wife Usagi, and this is Hino Rei. We have an appointment with Takada-san and Smith-san." "Yes, they said to expect you. I'm Takada's assistant Noriko. Please come in." She stepped aside for them, which necessitated her disappearing behind the massive door again. Usagi followed Mamoru through the opening. The room was dark, it took a moment for her eyes to adjust. When they did, she decided this must be a cathedral after all. The entire central hall was one big room, a great long hall that went right to the back of the building. There was another great paned window topped by another round stained glass rose window, mirroring those at the front. The long side walls had more tall stained glass windows in between great slender pillars. The pillars were topped with curving traverse arches and buttresses that supported the steepled roof. The interior was the same plain grey stone. After a moment, Usagi hit on the one thing that was missing that would have really made it look like a church. Pews. There was not a stick of furniture to be seen. And the windows had no pictures of saints or anything, just multicolor abstract patterns. The beam of light sent across the floor from the open door narrowed. Usagi turned to see Noriko pushing the door closed. It looked like it was taking no small effort. It closed with a gentle thud that echoed down the hall. She pulled a massive black iron bolt across the door, locking it shut. That's when Usagi noticed the enormous ward hung on the door. Hung was the right word, since it was a white tapestry, not paper. She vaguely recognized the characters, they were the same ones Rei used on her little paper wards. Except each of these characters was a meter high. Looked like Rei hadn't been kidding about this place. "If you'll let me take your jackets, I'll inform director Takada that you've arrived." They gave her their jackets and she walked over to an arched entranceway on the right that led into a dark corridor. There was a similar entrance to the left, no doubt each leading into one of the side wings. "I feel underdressed," Usagi muttered. "It's warm enough," Mamoru said. "No, I mean it feels like we're about to meet a bishop or something." She couldn't decide if they were speaking in low voices so as not to be overheard, or out of respect for what still looked like a church. "Well, it won't be a bishop," Rei said. "Despite appearances, this is not a Christian church. I've never seen anything like it." Which was really saying something, Usagi thought. Rei was practically a walking encyclopedia of world religions, including those weird secretive ones she used to work with before Usagi met her. She was beginning to think these people were from another planet. They heard footsteps echo through the hall. Takada, Smith and Saori emerged from the entrance Noriko had gone through, and approached them. Usagi noted the two men were no longer wearing their shaded glasses. "Hello, Everyone," Saori said with a friendly smile. "Thank you so much for coming. Mamoru, you're the only one who hasn't met my colleagues. This is agent Takada, acting director of the Tokyo branch. And this is agent Smith from the head office in New York." "That's Chiba Mamoru, correct?" Smith asked. Mamoru nodded. "I read your article on the history of terrorism in Japan. A very fine piece of work. You should consider submitting it to Foreign Affairs, I think they'd be interested in printing a translation." "Thank you. Perhaps I'll do that." "Usagi-san," Takada said. "I take it you all know why we've asked you to meet with us?" Usagi knew what he meant. "Yes, everyone here knows who I am. My husband is Tuxedo Mask, and Rei is Sailor Mars." They had agreed that they would tell the people from the Order at least that much right off the bat. "I see." Takada didn't seem to be very surprised. "Thank you for confiding in us. Like everyone in this city, I am in your debt. I've had glimpses of the forces you've been protecting us against. In fact, four years ago I think I just missed witnessing your battle near the former Galaxy Television, just after the final Three Lights concert." He could only be talking about their battle with Galaxia. "You were there? That place was a disaster area, how did you get near?" He smiled. "It wasn't easy. I got there just on time to see you all leave. I must confess, our office here has always been interested in finding out more about you. That was the only time we actually managed to get a glimpse of you, though." "We've been kind of curious about you too," Usagi said. "Rei's told me a bit about the Order. We've actually been to one of your other shrines. The one with the green glowing wards inside." "Ah, you mean just after the second Hakone incident. That is actually a sanctuary of our Shinto branch. This place shares some similarities with it. Look." He gestured up towards the ceiling. Usagi squinted. "Oh, now I see it." She hadn't noticed them before. They were bigger than the ones she had seen in the shrine they had taken Minako to, all those years ago. But they were so far up, they'd be hard to make out if she didn't know what to look for. In each corner of the ceiling was hung what looked like a huge barometer with a curving glass tube anchored on a great brass mooring. It was full of what looked like a slightly phosphorescent green gas. "This sanctuary is well guarded against spells, psionics and the creatures that wield them. Even during the disturbance I spoke of, this place remained untouched." "The building is interesting," Rei said. "Did the Order have it built?" "No, we obtained it. We purchased it from the estate of the late Sanjouin Masato." Usagi gasped. "Nephrite!" Takada cocked his head. "Excuse me?" "It's a stone," Smith said in perfect deadpan. "A mineral." Usagi shook her head. "No no, I mean Masato. His real name was Nephrite! He was a general of the Dark Kingdom. This must have been his base or something!" "I take it you fought him," Takada said. "Yes, he was the second general we fought. Naru-chan liked him, but she didn't really know who he was so ..." Her voice trailed off. She realized how little sense this was probably making. "It's kind of a long story." Takada smiled sympathetically. "Perhaps another time. We suspected that Masato dabbled in sorcery, but it wasn't until after his disappearance that we were able to find this place and get a good look at it. The value and power of it were unmistakable, so we arranged to obtain it. In the past few years we've learned to make use of some of what Masato left here. In fact, if you'll permit, there is one item I'd like to show you. It's the reason we're still standing in this uncomfortable echo chamber. Excuse me." He turned and took a few steps into the room, facing its centre. He brought his hands up before him. Usagi could only see his back, but from the way his arms were moving he was making some sort of motions with his hand. He seemed to be murmuring something as well. For some reason she was reminded of the chanting she would hear Rei do during fire readings. The great hall was suddenly filled with a ghostly image. A little golden ball surrounded by a series of concentric circles, with other curved lines looping around in more erratic ways. "A hologram?" Mamoru asked. "No," Takada said, still facing away from them. "An astral image." "It's the solar system," Rei said. "And those must be comets." "Correct," Takada said. "We have little idea what its original purpose was. Perhaps in the right hands it could even be an Oracle. The only ability we've been able to exploit is its ability to resonate with spiritual energy in the vicinity of a series of crystals we found here. We've distributed those crystals throughout the city and also beyond it, as astral detectors. I'll show you." More hand motions. The image dissolved, to be replaced with what looked like a constellation of shimmering stars. "I'm afraid you'll have to imagine a map of Tokyo superimposed over these." "I can see it," Rei said immediately. "You've put them in Shinjuku, Tokyo Station, Tokyo Tower ... one of them looks to be near Hikawa shrine." "Right under it, in fact," Takada said. "Ichiro managed to obtain your grandfather's permission." "Ichiro-san?" Usagi glanced at Rei. She seemed to be just realizing something. Usagi remembered the name now, the Buddhist priest who had conducted the funerals. Takada nodded. "I don't think he'd mind my telling you that he's been a member of the Order for many years." "I see," Rei said. "I guess I should have known." "We can monitor these astral detectors constantly from another room," Takada continued. "This display is rather redundant now, just somewhat clearer when it has to be seen by more than two or three people. This is what it looked like during the first attack on a shrine." A few of the lights shone brighter, and with slightly different colours. "We had been hoping to use this to pinpoint the attacks on the temples as they were happening. We thought we had come up with a formula, but then a new group of attacks started looking like this." Another group of lights became brighter. But they were more spread out, there was a much less distinctive pattern. "Usagi," Saori said. "Mamoru told me that you had a means of detecting the Ancients, but that during the series of attacks just before your wedding you were suddenly having problems." "Yes," Usagi said. They still hadn't mentioned anything about the refugees. Mamoru had just told Saori that they were obtaining help from another group of ESPers. She glanced at Rei. The raven-haired girl locked eyes with her for just a moment, gave an almost imperceptible nod. Ultimately, it was still Usagi's decision. *Well, in for a penny, in for a pound.* "We've been working with an extraterrestrial woman who is also an ESPer. She's helped us find out where these attacks were happening. But like Saori said, suddenly that wasn't working very well." The constellation of lights dissolved. Takada turned to face them. His expression was unreadable. "An extraterrestrial?" "Three of them. They're refugees from a war on a planet very far away. They were running from Galaxia, she's the one you almost saw us fight." She sighed. "It's a pretty long story." "Then perhaps we should move to more comfortable surroundings." They all moved into the wing of the building Takada and the others had emerged from. Noriko met them and showed them into a cozy room full of leather chairs and old books, with a huge picture window opening onto the pine forest. Usagi was content to let Rei do most of the talking. She told of Venus' chance meeting with the refugees, and gave a brief outline of how the extraterrestrials came to be here. She told of the attack on her shrine. She was perfectly calm, but Usagi still had to resist the urge to reach over and hold her hand. She told of the treachery of the Outer Senshi, for that was how she termed it. Neither Usagi nor Mamoru felt compelled to contradict her. Takada, in his turn, had a story to tell. He gave a chilling account of his encounter with little Akira, the Ancient boy who had come within inches of destroying Tokyo, and maybe much, much more. He told of his subsequent meetings with the boy's grateful mother, and the way in which she became his mole in her secretive family. It seemed she was unwilling to meet him anymore, after the attack on Hikawa shrine. "Perhaps she's afraid you'll try to force information from her," Rei suggested. "After what's happened." Takada shook his head. "No, she would not fear that. Nor does she need to, I would never do such a thing. It's hard to explain, but I really think she's ashamed. Somehow, she feels responsible for the lives that were lost." "Saturn did tell us one interesting thing," Rei said. "According to Pluto, the ones who attacked me have been effectively cast out of the family. It sounds like they're in hiding, acting on their own. At least that's what her contact claimed, I'm not sure how much faith to put in it." "Curious," Takada said. "If they're cut off from the family and presumably from this Seed Crystal, what would they gain by what they're doing?" "Perhaps they hope to regain their family's favour," Smith suggested. "By bringing them the means to create the Crystal Palace." "Regardless of whether this is a rogue group, they're still active," Takada said. "We need to try and anticipate their next move. Usagi, Saori has told me you think they're after the Sailor Senshi." "Yes. I'm not sure why, but I think so. Maybe they though Naru-chan was one of us." Takada nodded. "Yes, because she's also from the Moon Kingdom. Saori's been telling us about that. Presumably they have some way of detecting that. I don't imagine that you have some way to tell?" Usagi shook her head. "Not unless they actually remember stuff." "Director, perhaps we should begin interviews," Saori suggested. "Might be a good idea," Takada agreed. "Interviews?" Rei asked. "I've just about compiled a list of people in the city who have been attacked by .. well, monsters, to put it succinctly. Nearly a hundred in all, not including large groups of people, whom we assume were not specifically targeted. I was wondering if one of you could spare some time to review the cases, see if there were any the Senshi were involved with." "I can do that," Usagi said. She grinned. "Even more than the other Senshi, I seem to have a knack for stumbling into people being attacked by monsters. It's like they follow me around. We've never quite been able to figure that out." "Do you really mean to ask these people if they have memories of living on the moon?" Rei asked. "Our agents are trained to ask questions in the right way," Takada said. "And we are blessed by living in a country where everyone tends to obey people with badges without asking questions. And we have means of detecting people with unusual auras, that may be what is attracting the Ancients. Regardless of that, for the moment Saori is trying to arrange surveillance for as many of the people on her list as she can. Perhaps our interviews and your review of the cases can narrow the field." "Usagi," Saoir said. "I was wondering if the Senshi have given any thought to the question of police surveillance." "We talked about it," Usagi said. "We're kind of worried about the police finding out about our identities, if something happens. Especially Venus." "We anticipated that," Saori said. "I spoke with the director, and he said we would assign our own agents to watch the Senshi." "With your permission, those agents would be aware of your identities," Takada said. He smiled. "We are used to keeping secrets. We're good at it, believe me." Listening to Takada and Saori, Usagi suddenly realized what was different. She was treating him as her superior now. As if she was one of them. Usagi didn't feel the time was right to ask about that. "I'll talk to Venus and Mercury again," Usagi said. "I'm sure they'll agree." "Will we be meeting with the agents who will be assigned to us?" Mamoru asked. Smith cleared his throat. "In the case of you three, that would be me." He smiled, a simple act that seemed to transform him. "Other than scaring the kids away, you'll hardly know I'm there." "I hope I'm not being rude," Rei said. "But if we are attacked, do you have some way of helping to deal with the Ancients?" "Oh, we each have our ways. The director has his spells and such, I have other things. We can all hold our own, I assure you." "I understand your extraterrestrial colleagues are having limited success detecting these attacks," Takada said. "Still, it might be useful to have them in communication with us as well as you. To give us the earliest possible warning if they strike again." Usagi frowned. "You want to meet them?" "If they'll agree. Is that a problem?" "You're not going to ... well, you know, deport them or anything are you?" Takada seemed at a loss for words. Usagi heard Rei heave a sigh. "Usagi, I think we've made it pretty clear they're not invaders." Takada caught on. He chuckled. "As far as I know, the Order has never encountered a case of a confirmed extraterrestrial. Frankly, as well as gaining any possible help in this case, I'm desperately curious to meet them. I don't think the Order has any particular policy on extraterrestrials." "Actually we do," Smith said. "I looked it up once. It's a big long document, but in a nutshell we're supposed to be very, very nice to them." Usagi felt relieved. "Okay, I'll talk to them. They're all very friendly, I'm sure you'll like them." "Thank you," Takada said. "Ideally, as soon as possible I'd like to have a meeting with all the Senshi, your colleagues and the agents I'm assigning to this case, to arrange communications and such." "Sure," Usagi said. "I can probably call you later today." Nobody thought it necessary to mention that some of the Senshi would be missing from this meeting. "I've had all the case files I was talking about moved here," Saori said. "Whenever you have some time, I'd like to go over them." "We can do that now if you like," Usagi said. Takada and Smith excused themselves, and Saori took Usagi, Rei and Mamoru to a windowless room full if file cabinets. They sat down around a big table and started going through the files. Usagi was able to identify most of them right away. They were people who had been attacked by the Dark Kingdom's Generals, or the Death Busters' Daimon, or Nephrenia's Lemures, or Galaxia's Farces. Saori checked off hits and misses as they went. In a couple of hours they were done. They spent some time trying to think of people they had missed, ones not on Saori's list. She had already drawn up a chronological list, which helped fill in the gaps. Between her own recollection, and that of Mamoru and Rei, they were pretty sure they had them all. Many bittersweet memories were being awakened for Usagi. Memories of people whose lives they had touched, even if just briefly. A lot of them had met and known her as Usagi, not just as Sailor Moon. Most she had never seen again. But all of them she remembered fondly. More so than her colossal battles with the lords of Chaos, it was these people she felt most proud of, the ones whose lives she had stopped from being snuffed out. She found herself feeling grateful for this reminder of all the little victories they had won, all the people she had helped. It was making her feel less frustrated, less useless than she had been feeling lately. They had brought down more fearful enemies than the Ancients, they would do it again. Saori showed them out, Usagi promising she would try to arrange a meeting for tomorrow. When they were in the car, Mamoru wondered aloud whether Saori would be wearing shades the next time they saw her. ***** The Matriarch sat motionless on her wood stool as Kaori spoke, not reacting in any way. When Kaori was done, she just stood there, hands folded in front of her, waiting. After just a couple of seconds the Matriarch finally looked away from the Seed Crystal and fixed her penetrating eyes on Kaori. "An alliance, you say." "Yes, Matriarch." She grunted. "If your son and those other young pups are giving the Senshi such trouble, they can't be all that powerful. What makes them think they'll be able to waltz in here and turn the Seed Crystal into a palace? What makes them think we need their help?" "I believe they can help," Kaori said. "Sailor Pluto is centuries old, she has knowledge we can't even imagine." "Indeed," the Matriarch said. "Tell me, this woman who calls herself Sailor Pluto. Is she tall, dark and incomparably beautiful? Does she have eyes that burn red like coals and dark hair with hints of green like some Earth goddess?" This took Kaori utterly surprised. She had told the Matriarch nothing about Pluto herself, not even her assumed name. "You describe her as if you have met her." "I have not," Himiko said. "But my grandmother did. And she said she had heard of this same person from her own great aunt. Do you think you are the first of us she has ever spoken with? She is one of the least known legends of our family, but every Matriarch has at least known of her. She seems to show up every now and then, sometimes offering words of wisdom, sometimes not. About all we can be sure about her is her immense age. That, and her insatiable curiosity. The legends say she was always an asker of questions, always wanting to know everything." "She had mentioned that she has known many of our ancestors." "Indeed. So after centuries of hiding in the shadows, why does she suddenly want to come out in the open?" "She wants the same thing we do, Matriarch. She wants a sanctuary to protect us in the dark days to come." Himiko silently chewed on that for a while. "And who shall be mistress of the palace, do you think?" Kaori treated it as a rhetorical question. She just continued to wait. Himiko stared into the crystal again. When she spoke again, her voice was icy cold. "I could take it from you whenever I want, you know. The things you're not telling me. Take it from your mind, find out everything you know about this Sailor Pluto. But I think she's smart enough to know that. I don't think she's told you anything that could really harm her." "She has confided in me," Kaori said, not hiding her anger. "She is not our enemy, she really does mean us no harm." Himiko sniffed. "Don't get your back up. You wouldn't be here if you thought she meant harm to our family. I give you that much credit. The question is, do we need her in order to get what we want, or is she just trying to get something for nothing?" "We need each other," Kaori said. "We can't do this on our own." "Maybe, maybe not," Himiko said. "So what are the terms of this Alliance she's proposing?" "Three points," Kaori said. "First, any attack by anyone on either an Ancient or a Senshi will be treated as an attack on both. Second, once the palace has been brought into being, all Ancients and all Senshi and their families will have unconditional access to it. Third, any use of the powers of the palace for other than purely defensive measures can be vetoed either by you or by Sailor Moon." The Matriarch smiled. "More or less what I would have come up with, if I thought it were necessary." She turned away. "You can continue to be our liaison with them. Tell her I'll think about it." The audience was over. Kaori bowed and left. She walked down the cold, damp cave tunnel to the flagstone, and teleported herself to the garden behind the great house. It was snowing again, a layer of wet snow had accumulated since the last time the garden path had been swept. It was considered bad form not to pass through the house on the way out, but Kaori was not feeling particularly respectful right now. Besides, it was uncomfortably cold, and she didn't feel like treading through the snow. She closed her eyes and concentrated. In an instant, she was in the garden behind her own house. She went in through the back entrance and removed her shoes and coat. It was not as cold here as in Hokkaido, but still she was grateful it had been but a short walk. She went straight to her room, picked up her phone and dialled. "Hello?" Setsuna's voice. "It's me." "Did you talk to her?" "Yes. She won't commit to anything. I didn't even bother asking about a meeting with her, I'm sure she would say no. I think she's playing a waiting game, trying to find out how badly you want to deal with her." "Have they made any progress with the Seed Crystal?" "No. If Yui found something out, nobody else has been able to uncover it. I think pretty soon everybody there will have to admit that they're getting nowhere." "Then hopefully we won't have to wait long." "Are you going to talk to Sailor Moon?" "No, not yet. I don't think there's any point, not until the Matriarch is willing to talk. I was hoping to at least ask if you could visit Makoto, but I doubt she would agree." "From the way you describe Jeneth's powers, I doubt there's much I could do that she has not already done. You'll just have to have hope." "That's about all I have left." Kaori knew what she was referring to. "We'll make things right, Setsuna. We just have to be patient." Setsuna chuckled. "Very odd, you giving me that advice. So are you still okay for lunch next week?" "Of course." ***** They all stood on the sidewalk about two blocks from the target. Hitomi closed her eyes and put a hand to her temple, once again seeing through the eyes of one of her birds. **Wait, I've got her this time. I'm on the railing, looking in through her window. Uh ... second floor, third balcony from the left.** **Should be easy to figure out,** Shoji said. **Okay everyone, you know the drill.** He got acknowledgements from everybody. The four of them proceeded over to the apartment block. Hitomi's dove had been following the target all evening, and had finally led them to her home. The dove had taken a few minutes to find the actual apartment. Now they were all set. That is, assuming this wasn't another dud. There was no camera at the entrance, just an electronic lock. That took Yui about three seconds to bypass. They took the elevator up one floor. Shoji stepped out into the hall and looked to the right. **Let's see ... one, two, three. Must be this one.** They all followed him to the door. By this time nobody needed to be told what to do. Yui went to one side and took Akechi's hand, preparing to teleport him. Hitomi went to the other side and kept an eye out for anyone else entering the hallway. Shoji knocked on the door. He waited. Whether the target opened the door or used the intercom, Yui would be behind her in a moment. Except nobody came to the door. **Are you sure this is the right one, Senpai?** **Yeah. Hitomi, can you check up on what she's doing?** Hitomi closed her eyes. **Oh, I'm at a different window now. She's in the bedroom.** She frowned. **She's just standing there. She looks scared.** **Did she even come to the door?** Akechi asked. **I'm pretty sure she didn't,** Shoji said. **I'd have felt her aura.** **Maybe she can detect us somehow,** Akechi said. **Which may mean this one's the real thing,** Shoji said. **Yui, can you-** "Police, freeze!" He must have come out of the stairwell, very quietly. He had a gun held in a military grip, pointed at the bridge of Shoji's nose. Nobody moved. Yui didn't hear, but saw her friends' reaction. She followed their gaze and gasped. **Yui, don't-** But her power was already surging. The man in the suit went flying back. Remarkably, his gun didn't go off. That's what Shoji had been afraid of, no time to put up a barrier. The man slammed into the door at the end of the hallway, slumped down on the floor. They all gathered protectively together just on time for the second man to pop out of the stairway. This one just started unceremoniously squeezing off rounds at them. He stopped when he realized they were rebounding right back at him. He almost got hit. A gun was the worst thing in the world to be using against a PK barrier. Yui sent him flying, about ten times faster than the last one. He smashed right through the door. There were screams from inside that apartment, as a body came flying into their home. A dead body most likely. **Yui,** Shoji called. He pointed at the door beside them. **Blow the door!** **But-** **Let's get out of the hallway, now.** That was all the impetus she needed. She put her palm out towards the door and jerked it forward. The invisible force blast pulverized the door, sending a shower of splinters flying into the apartment. **Akechi, follow me.** Shoji ran in, opened the door to what must be the bedroom. The woman sitting on the bed shrank back. She put her arm up across her face and screamed. Akechi came up beside him and put his arms up. The woman convulsed, and slumped down onto the bed. Shoji walked over to her and picked her up off the bed, holding her limp body against him with one arm. He turned around to see that the girls had come in. He held out his other hand. **Yui, get us out of here. Nothing fancy, just the closest teleport point.** She nodded. She took Shoji's hand. Akechi took her other, and Hitomi put a hand on Yui's shoulder. Yui closed her eyes and concentrated. This would be hard, with four people and one not in direct contact. It was a few seconds before the room winked out of existence. Shoji blinked several times, waiting for the vertigo to pass. He almost dropped the comatose girl. That had been a rough one. They were in the middle of a little park. The nearest streetlight was a long distance away, so it was very dark. Well, that was the idea. He carefully laid the girl down on the grass. He knelt beside her and looked up at Yui. She was panting, adrenaline still surging through her veins. She wasn't using her powers to mitigate it. Not surprising, after a hard teleport like that using her power again right away would probably just make things worse, give her a headache. **You okay?** he asked. She just nodded. They all took a few moments to let the rush pass, and to recover from the rough teleport. Akechi and Hitomi walked over to a picnic table and sat down on the bench with the table to their backs, facing towards their friends. Yui just plopped down on the grass, still breathing heavily. **They must have been waiting for us,** Akechi finally said. **Yeah.** There was no point trying to deny it. Even after the regulations were changed last year, cops in Japan didn't carry guns unless they were tracking specific people who were known to be dangerous. And those two cops must have known what they were up to. Otherwise, they wouldn't have just shown up with weapons drawn. **But how the hell did they know who we are?** Akechi asked. **Who knows. Maybe one of the other places we hit had cameras somewhere.** **They must have warned the girl,** Hitomi said. **They must have called her as soon as they spotted us going into the building, told her not to answer the door.** **So the girl was being watched?** Akechi asked. **That's crazy, how could they have known we were after her? The black sheep only spotted her this morning.** **I guess there must be something special about her,** Shoji said. **Maybe this one really is a Senshi,** Hitomi suggested. **Maybe they're working with the police now.** **I guess we'll find out soon enough,** Shoji said. He turned to Yui and smiled. **Hey beautiful, you feeling better now?** She nodded. She was sitting with her arms wrapped around her knees. She was still shaking a bit. **I was just scared. Do you think I killed them?** Probably the second one. **No, I doubt it. I'll bet it sure hurt, though. You really shot from the hip. I bet Wyatt Earp couldn't get the drop on you.** She smiled, though it looked forced. **I'm sorry the 'port was so rough. If I hadn't been so scared, I think it would have been easy.** Four people easy? She must be getting good. He wanted to get this over with, maybe it was okay to try and speed things up a bit. **Think you're ready to take a closer look at our guest?** **Yeah, I think so.** She got up and stood over the woman. She raised her hands. The familiar kaleidoscope of lights rose from the prone body and settled between Yui's hands. Even before Yui spoke, Shoji knew what she would say. **This one's not right either. It's not like the image the Crystal sent me. And it's not like that Sailor Senshi.** Shoji sighed. **Alright, might as well put her back.** Yui turned her hands palms down, and the light motes cascaded back down into the girl's body. **That's the fourth dud in a row,** Akechi said. **Shoji, this isn't getting us anywhere. These black sheep aren't going to find a Senshi for us.** **They already found us one,** Shoji reminded him. **They can still find us another.** **Yeah, but how many are we going to have to go through first?** Akechi asked. **And maybe they're all being watched now. Shit, for all we know half the cops in Tokyo are looking for us now. Speaking of which, we're still pretty close to where we dropped those two, we should be getting out of here.** **Yeah, I guess you're right,** Shoji said. He stood up. **You want me to 'port us back home?** Yui said. Shoji walked over and put an arm around her. **No, I think you should rest for a bit. Let's just walk in the other direction for now.** The police would be looking for the missing girl soon, they'd find her lying here soon enough. She probably wouldn't freeze. **Are we going to still hunt for the Senshi?** Yui asked after they had walked a little ways from the park. **No, I think Akechi's right. This probably isn't going to get us anywhere, at least not quickly. If we want to nab a Sailor Senshi, I think we're going to have to flush them out.** **Oh great,** Akechi said. **Why don't we go kick a hornet's nest while we're at it?** **I've got an idea,** Hitomi said. Akechi let out a telepathic groan. She hit him playfully. **Stop that.** He actually smiled a bit. **This was your idea too, you know.** **And it's already hit paydirt once,** Shoji said. Hitomi stuck out her tongue at Akechi. He just rolled his eyes. **I can hardly wait.** **It's something I've wanted to try for a while, just for the heck of it, though I never had the nerve,** Hitomi continued, ignoring him. **I don't know if it will actually flush out a Sailor Senshi. But I think it'll be fun.** End Chapter 11 --------------19FB4843113A-- From - Wed Jan 07 23:55:59 1998 Return-Path: Received: from smtp28.bellglobal.com (smtp28.bellglobal.com [204.101.251.58]) by pop50.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id VAA27458 for ; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:10:13 -0500 (EST) Received: from access.mbnet.mb.ca (root@access.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.11]) by smtp28.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id VAA01656 for ; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:10:10 -0500 (EST) Received: from ts8m-11.mbnet.mb.ca (ts8m-11.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.142]) by access.mbnet.mb.ca (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id UAA24648; Wed, 7 Jan 1998 20:09:31 -0600 (CST) Message-ID: <34B45FC8.4C4C@mbnet.mb.ca> Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 21:10:32 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Win16; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 12] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------4F0128CE5B1D" X-UIDL: 1b949605858271e6b655667cc37d14d8 X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: 32694 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------4F0128CE5B1D Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com --------------4F0128CE5B1D Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; name="SECRET12.TXT" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SECRET12.TXT" Secrets Chapter 12 - The Trap The New Year's cards were delivered shortly after they had all had breakfast. Most of them were for Usagi and Mamoru, but a quick glance showed that Rei had quite a few as well. Soon after she had moved in, the two of them had persuaded her to send letters out to everyone she knew, informing them of her change of address. Nevertheless, they stopped off at the shrine grounds on their way to the Tsukino residence. Regular mail to the shrine was being forwarded to the apartment, but sure enough there was a bundle of New Year's cards sitting in the mailbox. As always when Rei came to the grounds, her two crows Phobos and Deimos flew over and perched on the nearest branch, greeting her noisily. As always, she would spare a moment to talk to them. Usagi remembered how overjoyed Rei had been to find them alive and well, the first time she had come here to visit the ruins. It had made what could have been an agonizing experience bearable, and had given Rei a well needed boost. The two guardian spirits didn't have much to guard now. The burned rubble of the house and the shrine building had been cleared away, in preparation for the rebuilding that was planned for the spring. The police still kept a constant guard over the site. It wasn't clear what they were guarding, but Rei had explained that for various political reasons they were very sensitive about the Hikawa shrine. The three of them walked back down the long stairway to the parked car, and continued on their way. Usagi was suddenly remembering the last New Years. It had been the first since she had moved in with Mamoru, but they had still spent the day at her parents' house. That was the year Usagi had hit upon the idea of inviting Makoto over for the day. She had wanted to kick herself for not having thought of it years ago. Makoto had no family to share the day with, and as she had told Usagi later she usually visited her parents' grave, then went by herself to one or more shrines to offer the traditional prayer for good luck in the coming year. But she had been happy to accept the invitation, had enjoyed spending the day with Usagi's family. It had long since become obvious to Usagi's parents that her four closest friends had become like sisters to her, so they always treated the girls just like family. It saddened Usagi that Makoto was not with them this year. Ami had said she would drop by the hospital today and wish her a happy new year. Usagi had wanted them all to go, but Ami had convinced her Makoto should only have one visitor at a time. Usagi wasn't quite sure why, but she was willing to trust Ami's judgement. Well, next year would be the beginning of the new millennium, even though Ami said that technically that wasn't until 2001. They would all have to plan something special. Usagi rang the doorbell, and her mother answered. "Happy New Year mom!" Usagi chimed. Her mother smiled warmly. "Happy New Year, kitten. Come in, everyone." She stepped back to let them come in and take off their shoes and jackets. Usagi was happy to see that Rei wasn't bothering with formalities, no longer endlessly thanking Usagi's family for the invitation each time she came here. They had managed to get her out of that habit in the past few weeks. Usagi shuffled into slippers. "Did the cards arrive?" "Yes, some time ago," her mother answered. "We haven't even unbundled them yet. A lot of yours are probably still being sent here, so we waited for you." Usagi's expression brightened. "Does that mean I still get to sort through them?" "Of course, that's still your job." Ever since she had been old enough to read them, Usagi had loved being the one to sort through the New Years cards, reading out the ones that were to the whole family. "You look really beautiful, Ikuko-mama," Rei said. Mamoru was quick to agree. Her mother blushed slightly. "Thank you." She really did look wonderful. It was her habit to wear a very colourful formal kimono on this day. But she didn't put her hair up, which was good since as far as everyone was concerned the long, wavy blue-tinted hair looked best when cascading loosely down her back. Usagi and Rei would be changing into slightly less elaborate ones when they all went out later today to visit a shrine. That was about as long as Usagi could stand wearing one of those things. On top of the discomfort, they made certain biological functions essentially impossible. Usagi had never had the nerve to ask just how her mother was able to wear one all day. It would probably have led to a lecture on enduring hardships silently. Usagi's mother ushered them all in to the living room. Usagi's father and her brother Shingo were already there. Shingo was reclined on the floor near the TV, it looked like they had been watching one of the splashy New Years celebrity programs. "Hi Dad, Hi Shingo!" Usagi called out, waving. "Happy New Year!" There were greetings all around. Shingo was dressed casually as were the other three younger people, but Usagi's father was in his best suit, also something he traditionally did on this day. Usagi spotted the thick bundle of cards sitting on the coffee table. "Boy, your pile is still a lot bigger than ours." "A lot of those are obligatory cards from my business associates," her father said. Usagi giggled. "Yeah, I always used to hate those, they were the boring ones with no pictures or anything." "Oh, I expect you'll be getting more of those each year," her father said. He glanced at Mamoru. "Your husband is very quickly establishing his credentials and becoming more well known." "Well, I don't know about that ..." Mamoru said. "Oh it's true!" Usagi cut in. "We're always running into people who have read his articles. They're always telling him how good they are." Even that Smith-san from the Order, she thought. That got her to wondering exactly where he was right now. She had told him where she would be today, but he had assured her that he would maintain a discrete distance. Other than the times he checked in with them, he had been essentially invisible, though presumably always nearby. "Usagi was telling me you had submitted an article to an English- language publication," her father said. "That's right," Mamoru said. "A friend of mine helped me with the translation and I submitted it to Foreign Affairs. I'm not too hopeful, but we'll see." "Nonsense," Usagi's father said, smiling warmly. "You're very highly spoken in our firm as well. I think your voice deserves to be heard in the English-speaking world as well." "Thank you, Kenji-papa," Mamoru said. Usagi took his arm and snuggled up to him, very pleased with herself. Her father's attitude to Mamoru had been guarded since she had formally introduced him to her family, around the time she had started college. He had expressed misgivings about their age difference right up to her wedding. But since the wedding he had warmed to her husband considerably. Her mother had spoken to her privately once, telling her how proud her father was of the way Usagi and Mamoru were helping their friend through her time of grief. That more than anything had convinced him that Usagi and her husband really were ready for whatever hardships their marriage might throw at them. "Shingo seems to be following your lead," her father continued. "He won another essay contest at school this month." "Really?" Usagi said. "That's cool!" "It was just within my own school," Shingo said. "No big deal, really." Despite his nonchalance, Usagi could sense the pride he felt. He had always been a better than average student, but it seemed that in his high school years something had inspired him to really excel. He was doing things like editing the school paper, the sort of thing he would have avoided like the plague in middle school. Their mother was very pleased of course, but in private she fretted over how he didn't seem to be taking much interest in girls anymore. 'Count your blessings' Usagi had countered. "I'd like to read your essay sometime, if that's okay," Mamoru said. Shingo couldn't hide how pleased he was. "Sure. I've got spare copies, I can give you one before you leave." "Rei," Usagi's mother said. "I know you have a lot of your own cards to go through, but would you like to help Usagi sort through ours first?" "Yes, I'd love to," Rei said. Usagi had been hoping her mother would suggest that. Her brilliant plot to turn them all into Rei's surrogate family was proceeding very nicely. Usagi divided the pile of cards in half, and they got to work. While the others either chatted or watched TV, they divided up the cards into piles for the people they were addressed to. Whenever one of them came across a card that was addressed to the whole family, Usagi or Rei would stop to read it aloud to everyone. Usagi came across a particularly striking one. The picture on the back was a very simple but elegant brush painting in black ink, the beautiful pattern suggesting rather than showing cranes flying over wind- swept grass. "Wow, this one wasn't printed, it was hand painted." She flipped it over. The New Years greeting was a poem written in beautiful calligraphy. The style was lovely, but very hard to read. No return address either. "I think it's for Shingo. Rei, can you read that?" She pointed to what appeared to be the signature. Rei leaned over and looked. "It's a different character than I would have thought you were supposed to use, but I'm pretty sure it's supposed to be read 'Hotaru'." "That's mine," Shingo said. He got up to his knees, reached over and snatched it out of Usagi's hands. "Thanks." Well, he really seemed to be in a hurry to read that one, Usagi thought. And now that she thought about it, he'd gotten a similar card last year, though without Rei's help Usagi hadn't been able to read the name. So that was how you pronounced it. Usagi blinked. *Wait a second.* "Aha!" She thrust her arm out, pointing at her little brother. "I've found Hotaru's secret boyfriend!" Shingo glared at her. He didn't really look angry, just annoyed. "A little louder onesama, I think the neighbours might have missed that." "Hotaru?" their mother asked. Their bewildered parents were both looking alternately at one of their children and then the other. "It's from Tomoe Hotaru, isn't it?" Usagi asked. An ironic smile. "Only took you two years to figure that out, onesama?" "Hotaru?" their mother repeated. "Two years?" Usagi cried. "You've been her boyfriend for two years and neither of you even told me?" He shrugged. "You never asked." "Hotaru?" their mother repeated. "You must remember Hotaru," Usagi said, turning to her suddenly very attentive parents. "She would come by to visit Chibi-usa when she was living with us here." "Chibi-usa?" Her mother put a finger to her chin and cast her gaze upwards, thinking. Usagi wondered if she was having trouble remembering. When Chibi-usa had left four years ago to go back to the thirtieth century, Usagi had asked her not to wipe the memory of her visit from her family's memories. Instead, they remembered her as a distant cousin who had come to live with them in Tokyo for a while. But since then their memories had been tampered with by an even more powerful spell cast by Galaxia's spirit in the form of Chibi-chibi. Those memories had been wiped, and Usagi suspected some of the memories of Chibi-usa had gone with them. Usagi decided she might have to jog their memories. "You know, the really pretty girl from Infinity Academy?" "Oh, her!" her mother said. She turned to their father. "You remember dear, the nice quiet girl who would come over and visit Usagi's cousin." "Yes," her father said hesitantly. "Yes, I remember her. Though I remember her being somewhat older. Almost Usagi's age in fact." Her mother frowned. "Yes, that's right." Usagi froze up. *Oops.* "Her health was poor back then," Shingo cut in. "She had a serious accident when she was small, and it took her a long time to recover. She was pretty thin and had to wear these warm bodysuits, it made her look taller and older. She's the same age as me." "Is she well now?" their mother asked. From her tone she might as well have gone ahead and asked "Is my little girl well?" Usagi blinked, her head spinning. Thirty seconds and their mother was already thinking of Hotaru as a potential daughter in law. Mothers really could be scary sometimes. Usagi was just starting to get her head around this, to realize all the little signs she had missed. The way they danced at her wedding, the casual yet familiar way they greeted each other whenever Hotaru had been over visiting Usagi. Shingo smiled. "Yes Mom, she's just fine." "So why have we never seen your young lady here?" their father asked. "Well, we don't exactly go out a lot," Shingo said. "She goes to a private academy, so she's even busier than I am. We've mostly just been writing letters." Yes, those mysterious letters, Usagi thought. Another thing she had missed. A lot of things were making more sense now. Shingo and Hotaru. Wow. "Well, whenever she can spare an evening we should have her over for dinner," their mother said. "I only remember her vaguely, I'd love to meet her again." "Oh, you'll just love her!" Usagi enthused. "She's gorgeous and brilliant and just the nicest girl you could ever meet!" "The name Tomoe sounds familiar," their father said. Usagi froze again. In her enthusiasm she had let her guard down, was letting things slip without thinking. But she had to say something. "Her father is a well know physicist, Kenji-papa," Rei cut in. "He was the dean of Infinity Academy before it burned down. I understand he was injured in the accident there, it's possible he took his early retirement for health reasons." "Oh my," Usagi's mother said. "No wonder she's going to a private academy, coming from such a distinguished family." She was looking very, very eager now. Eager to meet this great catch her son had made. Yes, mothers could definitely be scary. "If she was a good friend of Usagi's cousin, perhaps we have a picture of her in one of our albums," her father suggested. Usagi was in firm control now that Rei had given her a quick respite to collect her thoughts. Time for damage control. "I think I might have some pictures," Usagi said. "But they'll be in one of my albums. Do you want me to go have a look?" "Jeez, you don't need to do that right now," Shingo said. "If you have any, I'd like to see them," their mother said, ignoring him completely. "Okay, I'll go look," Usagi said, getting up. "I'd better go help you," Rei said. "I don't know how you manage it, but you keep that room looking like a disaster area faster than Ikuko-mama can clean it, even though you're not even here once a week." "Oh thanks," Usagi said, feigning resentment. "I suppose you think you can find things in my room faster than I can?" "Well, I did take an Archeology course in my extra year at Thomas Aquinas, I think that qualifies me to search through your closet." They both showed their tongues, and everyone laughed. "You two go ahead," Ikuko said. "I'll finish sorting out the cards." Usagi led Rei up to her room. When she had closed the door behind them, Rei gave Usagi a look that was both stern and sympathetic. "You really should be more careful what you say," she said in a low voice. "I know," Usagi said, also keeping her voice down. "If you hadn't covered for me I might have really blown it." Rei dismissed her guilt ridden self criticism with a gesture. "Never mind that. You don't have any pictures of Hotaru from when she was little, do you?" Usagi shook her head. "No, I've at least done that right. All the pictures I have are from when she looked at least as old as when Chibi-usa met her. Any others I gave to Setsuna." "Well, that should be okay, then. We should still flip through whatever album you're going to take down, just in case." "Right." The albums were in fact very easy to find, Rei had probably just been looking for an excuse to come make sure Usagi didn't mess up again. Usagi felt no resentment about that, just gratitude. They flipped through an early picture album, and found a few of Hotaru, usually with Chibi-usa. Many of them were really nice pictures taken by Mamoru when they had gone on a cherry blossom viewing picnic. She looked older than the thirteen years she was supposed to be at the time, but not so much so that it was impossible to think of her as being that age. And she looked so much better in the later pictures Usagi had of her, much less thin and pale. That would distract from the fact that she really didn't look five years older than in the old pictures. "I'll take these two," Usagi said, selecting two albums, an old and a new one. "When they see the more recent pictures, maybe they won't even want to look at the old ones. I guess we should go." She moved to get up from where she was kneeling on the carpet, but Rei took a hold of her arm, just firmly enough to get her attention. "Usagi, what's wrong?" Usagi was about to say that nothing was wrong, but could see from Rei's expression that wouldn't wash. She sighed. "It's been a part of my life for so long now that I don't even think about it any more. I mean, this secrecy, lying about all these things that I can't really explain to them. I don't know why, but suddenly it's been bothering me." "I guess it's always been hardest for you," Rei said, squeezing her arm gently. "You've got the biggest family, and even though you're living on your own you're still so close to them. It's understandable you would feel bad." "Rei, we never told the rest of you, but Mamo-chan and I were thinking of telling them when we went to announce our wedding day." Rei frowned. "You mean, tell them everything?" "Well, at least who Mamo-chan and I really are. We talked a long time, but eventually decided against it. I mean, back then we didn't know about this new enemy. It looked like it might be years before I needed to be Sailor Moon again, so maybe there was less point in telling them." "And now?" Rei asked gently. Usagi shook her head. "I've just had this feeling for a while now that things are going to change for all of us. I mean, things are already changing. I don't just mean what's happening in the world, though that's scary enough. I mean, there are more people who know about us now. It's not just our little secret any more. I just can't shake the feeling that there's no going back now." "Usagi, it's up to you, but I think you should wait a while. At least until we've settled our current business. Then you can step back and really think about it." Usagi smiled. "Don't worry, I would talk to you all before I decided on anything like that. And you're right, I probably should wait. To tell you the truth, as much as I've wanted to tell them the truth, I've been dreading it too. I guess I'm still a coward." Rei took her hand, looked intently into her eyes. She took a slow, deep breath before speaking, a sure sign that was was coming was a difficult thing for her to say. "Usagi, when you think the time is right, don't tell them with any fear of how they will feel about you. I told you that grandpa found out who I am just before he passed away. When he realized who I was, when I saw the look on his face ... that will always be the proudest moment of my life." "Rei-chan ..." Usagi was grateful beyond words, but more immediately she was worried about how Rei was feeling. But the bittersweet nostalgic look faded, to be replaced by a warm smile. "Come on Usagi, they're probably wondering what's happened to us." When they went back down, everybody took a long break from reading cards to gush over the pictures of Shingo's girlfriend. They all did a fine job of thoroughly embarrassing him. ***** As far as Shoji was concerned, the Animal Kingdom was a glorified petting zoo, and not much of one at that. Yes, they had a few mildly exotic animals here, some monkeys and such. But mostly it was just barnyard animals. And lots and lots of cats and dogs. After all, this was also supposed to be some sort of animal shelter. From what Hitomi was telling him, the owner was an eccentric heir to a family fortune who cruised the back alleys of Tokyo in an old beat-up car, picking up abandoned kittens and puppies and such. There were signs everywhere encouraging the guests to adopt one of the poor, adorable little creatures. Since they had arrived here about three hours ago he had seen more than one family walk out of here, each kid smiling from ear to ear as they held their brand new furry little friend. But after slowly working their way through practically every pen and every kennel in the place, Yui was starting to look bored and Hitomi was starting to look tired. **How you hanging in there, 'Tomi?** Shoji asked. **Still okay,** Hitomi said. **Though I'll probably have a massive headache tomorrow.** **I'll have to get Shoji to give you one of his patented face massages,** Yui said. **It really helped me after that rough 'port I did last week.** **I might just take you up on that,** Hitomi said. She had gained the attention of the dog whose cage she had been peering into. She locked eyes with it, and as usual it froze in place while her eyes glowed. After just a couple of seconds the glow faded and the dog went to examining the other humans standing outside its cage as if nothing had happened. They worked their way down the line of cages. They looked very much like they were searching for a pet of their own, which was just what they had intended. Once or twice one of the volunteers working here had approached and politely asked whether they needed any assistance. Hitomi had just sent them away with a stare and an equally polite 'No thank you' that had permanently directed their attention elsewhere. They had gone back outside and were headed to a pen of white geese when Akechi's voice came in an open sending. **Hey, everyone. No panic, but I think you're being followed.** They all made a point of not reacting. Shoji just walked up to the pen and leaned on the fence, looking casually at the gaggle of geese. **Yeah?** **Two men. Looks like one of them's headed closer. He's not in a hurry, probably just wants a closer look.** **To confirm who we are,** Shoji said. **So they do have pictures, just like we thought.** **Should I keep going?** Hitomi asked. **Sure,** Shoji said. **Even if he figures out you're up to something, at this point that's fine with us.** Hitomi came up beside him. He could feel her putting out the warm, comforting emanations that would attract the animals to her. After a few moments, the milling geese were all congregating around their end of the pen. One of them looked at Hitomi. Then another. Then another. With herding or flocking animals, she could get a group thing going. Pretty soon they were all looking at her. The kids watching from the other side of the pen seemed very interested in this curious phenomenon. So did the man walking slowly by, who was actually doing a fairly good job of just giving them the odd inconspicuous glance. He avoided eye contact completely. **Akechi, that him?** **Yeah.** **Okay, when 'Tomi's done with this batch, we'll call it quits. Just follow us out the exit.** **Sounds good.** The glow in Hitomi's eyes brightened for a moment. Then it faded, and the geese started milling about at random again. The kids on the other side of the fence looked a little glassy-eyed, but soon recovered. Residual effects. That man had not reacted at all. Presumably he hadn't been looking at Hitomi at the wrong time, so he was clueless about what had just gone down. Shoji waited for the man to put some distance between them before slowly leading the two girls to the exit. He didn't see or feel Akechi moving up behind them, nor had he expected to. **They'll probably follow us out.** Akechi said. **That's fine, we'll just duck into that alley like we planned.** They did exactly that. Without a word, Akechi materialized behind them. Shoji stepped behind Yui and put his hands on her shoulders. Akechi and Hitomi each took one of her hands. In a flash they were in their living room. Yui kept hold of her white-haired friend's hand. **You okay, 'Tomi?** **Yeah. I think I'll go soak in the tub for a bit.** There was a sheen of sweat on her face that Shoji had noticed developing as the day progressed. She really had been pushing herself. **So you figure you can switch them on and then back off again?** Shoji asked her. **Yes, at least most of them. You figure we should go tonight?** **Nah, they'll probably be watching that place for weeks. Tomorrow should be fine.** **Senpai, why does she need to turn them off again?** Yui asked. Shoji chuckled. **Well, assuming the Sailor Senshi take the bait, we want at least one of them left alive. That's the whole point, right?** **Oh yeah, right.** She grinned. **If that Mars bitch is there, can I take her?** **Whatever you want, Yui-chan.** ***** Ami sighed contentedly, a sound that became a gentle moan as Ryou's fingers dug deeper into the muscles of her shoulders. "Mmm. That feels wonderful." "Hard day at work, ma'am?" Ryou asked. It was a running joke, talking to her like a customer at a health spa while he did this for her. "Mmm Hmmm. Had to help move an anesthetized patient off his bed for surgery. He must have weighed a hundred and twenty kilos at least." She spoke in a slow, soft voice, Ryou's attentions almost coaxing her into a dreamlike state. "Must have been pretty fat. Was the surgeon able to find what he was looking for?" "Not funny," Ami said, her tone implying that it didn't matter. "That's a serious problem during surgery on overweight people. One of the reasons I tell you to watch your weight." "Oh, I don't have a problem there, since all I have to eat is my own cooking." "Your cooking is fine," Ami said, her mind only half on the conversation. She was lying on her stomach, the side of her head lying on a pillow, her arms stretched out over her. She was on their futon, that being about the only appropriate place in her little apartment for a massage. She was covered by nothing but a light summer blanket over her hips, the space heater nearby keeping it warm enough that she wouldn't get a chill. Her injured muscles had fully recovered, so these massages were no longer necessary for any therapeutic purpose. But Ryou had continued doing this whenever they had the chance, which was fine by her. Besides, more often than not this led to her returning the favour, which would get them both in the mood for something more intimate, a trick she had learned well from her previous lover. Ryou had originally moved in to play nursemaid for her, but it had become a more or less permanent arrangement, he using his old place mostly for storage. Neither of them minded the cramped quarters, but they had already started looking for a slightly bigger place that would be more or less convenient for both of them. The sound of her communicator chiming brought Ami fully awake in an instant. Without being prompted Ryou moved off his position astride her back, letting her slide over and grab the wrist communicator from off her pile of neatly folded clothes sitting on the tatami mats nearby. She flipped up the cover, an act that would signal the sender that she was ready to receive. The white dot in the centre of the dial was flashing, meaning the signal was from Usagi's communicator. Mars and Saturn's tiny sigils on the dial were already glowing. Venus' sigil started glowing almost immediately. That had no doubt been what Usagi had been waiting for before speaking. "Everyone, the Ancients have been spotted walking towards the Animal Kingdom," Came Usagi's anxious, tinny voice. "They'll be there in less than ten minutes." "On my way," Ami said. She winked at Ryou. "We'll have to continue this later, duty calls." She got to her feet, dressed in naught but her panties. Dress first? No, just be sure to remember her state of undress before she transformed back. Minako had forgotten that once, probably would have walked out of that alley in her birthday suit if the others had not commented that she must have been in the shower when the call came. Ami willed her transformation pen straight into her hand. She had found that with practice she didn't need to reach behind her. She lifted it over her head, and the flash of shimmering clear blue light came, sending the rush of power up and down her body. In an instant she had transformed into Sailor Mercury. Ryou stood beside her now. They joined hands. "Wish me good hunting," Mercury said. "Good hunting," he said absently. His wistful smile broadened. "It's been a while, I'd almost forgotten what you looked like." There was a hint of something else in his eye. So, he really liked her in this outfit. On impulse, she leaned forward and kissed him. Her body responded with alarming speed, almost overwhelming her. She broke it off quickly. It looked like they were both surprised by her reaction. She smiled sheepishly, her breathing a little heavier now. "Sorry, my senses are heightened when I'm Mercury." "Really?" It sounded like he found that fact very interesting. She pointed at him. "Don't even think about it. I'd end up either drowning or freezing us." As Minako had found out once, she neglected to add. "We can talk about it when you get back." His expression sobered. "Ami, I have a feeling what you're doing tonight won't be easy. Be careful." She knew better than to press him for details. His precognition only worked so far. "I will." She jumped lightly to the little window and opened it. She leapt straight out and onto the opposite roof. Since yesterday they had half expected to be called to the Animal Kingdom, so she had the route will mapped out. It was in their immediate neighbourhood, so there was no point going to the shrine to teleport, the Senshi would simply converge directly on the Animal Kingdom. Hotaru was staying at Makoto's nearby apartment, after Ami had identified herself to the landlord as Makoto's medical proxy and had introduced Hotaru as a friend of hers. They had decided on that yesterday, after two of Saori's plainclothesmen had positively identified three of the people captured on Umino's security camera. They had not attacked anyone, but had appeared to be searching the grounds. Presumably for their next target. The police had promptly lost them, probably because they teleported. The small part of Ami's mind that was not devoted to manoeuvring over the rooftops and walls reviewed the plan. Now that the enemy had been spotted in the same place again, they were presumably going after their target. By now the police had evacuated the few people who normally spent the night on the grounds. In their place, Takada-san would be waiting for the Ancients. Supposedly he had a very nasty surprise for them. When she was within a couple of blocks, she went down to street level and opened her communicator. "This is Mercury. I'm nearby." "They've gone over the front gate," Usagi said. She was keeping her voice down. "We're all at the back gate." "On my way." She ran down the narrow streets, making her way around to the back of the grounds before approaching. It was a narrow alleyway that ran along the brick wall that marked the back of the property. Sailor Moon, Mars, Venus and Saturn were already there. So were the refugees. They had dropped their glamours, so they were not in their human form. They had warned Takada that they dropped their glamours when going into combat to conserve energy. So everyone involved in this operation were briefed that they would be working in collaboration with Sailor Senshi, and also with extraterrestrials. Ami could only guess how Saori had explained that one. But apparently she had, for she was standing there with two of her fellow officers. At least she presumed they were her officers, for they were without the shades worn by Smith and the three Suits who waited with him nearby. She had to wonder how those four could see, the alleyway was dark enough as it was. The gate in the wall was open, but there was a building right in front of it, blocking their view of the grounds. Presumably this was a service entrance. Nobody spoke. They all were looking towards Saori, who appeared to be waiting to hear something on her headset. Waiting for word that the trap had been set. Ami glanced at the various people congregated here. Naturally, everyone was tense and anxious. If the police agents or the agents from the Order felt unnerved by the presence of Senshi or E.T's, they were just working with it. There was a flash of red light from the grounds and a *whump* like a great fire suddenly being ignited. Saori put up her hand. *Wait for it.* After three of Ami's quick heartbeats, Saori nodded. "Now!" They poured through the gate, by previous agreement following Sailor Moon's lead. She led them around the left side of the building and into the open ground beyond. *Just follow the red light,* Takada had said. When they had all cleared the building and fanned out, Ami could see what he meant. The great flaming red pentagram blazing three meters over the ground lit up the whole area with a ruddy glow. The four Ancients were directly underneath it. Great sparks like lightning snaked up and down between the shimmering spherical barrier they had around themselves and the glowing pentagram that bore down on them, making sounds like downed high tension cables. Ami got the impression that barrier was the only thing keeping the Pentagram from falling down on them and consuming them. Takada had said there was some chance it would do just that even before they had a chance to put up any kind of barrier. Since they were still there, it meant that Takada's spell was performing its secondary function: preventing them from moving or teleporting out of it. That meant they were moving straight into plan B. The Senshi, Thetan and K'theelm formed a rough arc centred on the trapped Ancients. On their right, Smith and his three companions were levelling big revolvers at the ESPers. That surprised Ami. They had all seen the disastrous outcome when two of Saori's agents had confronted the Ancients. One of them would have died, had it not been for Saturn's speedy intervention. She had to presume they only meant to use the guns if the PK barrier went down. Saori and her two agents were holding back, but to the left of the Senshi four uniformed officers were running over to take up position. Ami spared a closer look at the bulky weapons they had put to their shoulders. Saori had mentioned them. Tasers, apparently powered up ones that might even disrupt the PK barrier as a last resort. Ami shifted her gaze back to the enemy. Their eyes were all glowing, she could even see the ones behind the shaded glasses of the white haired girl. It was hard to read their expressions at this distance and under the crackling light show, about all she could tell was that they were all crouched down, ready for action. Takada said that his spell would make any attacks of theirs backfire on them. Either they knew that or it was taking all their power just to keep up their shield. Takada also walked up to take his position in line, right beside Sailor Moon. "I'm going to explain the situation to you," he called out to the Ancients. He threw three objects out towards them, they landed on the ground under the pentagram but just outside the PK barrier. Three metal rings, each about fifteen centimetres across. "You have two choices. First choice, you levitate those rings inside your barrier, I know you're capable. They're power suppressors. You put them on and I activate them. When your barrier collapses, my spell will descend and bind you. It won't be pleasant but you'll live to tell about it. Second choice, we stand here and wait until my spell starts to run out of steam. When it does, I give the signal for everybody here to hit your barrier with everything they've got, on a count of three. I have no idea what would be left of you after that and I don't really care. I'd suggest you make up your minds quickly." The white haired girl drew herself up to full height, as if taking in a deep breath. She shouted, her voice having a resonating quality as if it were being amplified somehow or as if it were accompanied by an echoing voice in Ami's head. "Action!" Everybody tensed up. Something was wrong. After a moment, Ami realized what it was. The sounds of the animals in the pens around them were growing louder. Ami had already been vaguely aware of their making a ruckus, no doubt alarmed by what looked like a fire in their midst. Now it sounded like they were being driven mad. A fence to their left shattered, making everybody look. A stampede of howling monsters came bearing down on them. Within seconds, all the pens, cages, and buildings around them were being reduced to splinters, shattered by the screaming monstrosities that were breaking out of them. Some ran on all fours, others flew, a few even ran on hind legs. They seemed to be growing and spouting more tusks, claws and fangs even as they converged on the humans. They all had glowing red eyes full of raw animal hatred. Their cries and roars were deafening. Ami spotted one of Smith's men take a bead on one of the charging monsters. Good God, conventional weapons were all but useless against creatures like this, didn't they even know that much? The gun went off, with not as much flash or noise as Ami would have expected. The humpbacked doglike monster barely seemed to notice the impact on its wide chest, but a split second later bluewhite lightning whipped out of the impact point, turning in on the creature and enveloping it. The thing screamed piteously and fell to the ground, convulsing horribly. So they were using very unconventional ordinance. Everyone fired at once, bullets and Senshi attacks and taser wires going out in all directions. Ami took two precious seconds to scan in all directions, looking for an opening. There was none, they were surrounded. Without an escape route, putting up a screen of fog would be worse than useless. Instead she shot at the most immediate threat, calling up her Aqua Rhapsody and sending shimmering blue streams of supercooled gas at a flock of great screeching birds that were bearing down on them. Most of them plummeted to the ground, their frozen bodies shattering just in front of her. The ones at the edge of the area effect also fluttered to the ground. The ones that moved flopped about, crying in agony. The red glow was gone from their eyes, and they were shrinking before Ami's eyes, changing. The live ones were changing into what looked like geese. There was a pause after the first volley, like Ami everyone was probably hoping the wholesale slaughter would discourage the others, send them running. But their attack seemed to just enrage the creatures all the more, they were only delayed as long as it took to leap around and over their fallen brethren. Ami sent another Aqua Rhapsody splashing over a group of misshapen sabre-toothed cats running straight for her at alarming speed. Their bodies also fell and shattered. Some who had half succeeded in leaping away were rolling on the ground mewling, their heaving breaths sending out clouds of steams as their half frozen lungs laboured. Scanning for new threats, she noticed that the creatures were giving the glowing pentagram a wide berth. Ironically, Takada's spell was protecting the Ancients. She had noticed a sound like colossal hooves becoming louder, and could feel it like an earthquake now. A massive unicorn three meters at the shoulder came galloping around the pentagram, crying with a sound like metal being shredded, foaming at the mouth, tearing up the ground with its great hooves. At sight of the beleaguered humans it lowered its head and charged. Ami sent a tightly focused Aqua Rhapsody straight into it. The colossus tumbled and fell, rolling on the ground. It's frost-whitened body twisted and gyrated, kicking up great streams of dirt with its wild thrashing. The smaller animals behind it gave it a wide berth, it would take them a few moments to move around the colossus going through its noisy death throes. Ami made use of the momentary respite to look back and check on her companions. She looked at Sailor Moon just in time to see the rod in her hand grow to its full three meter length. The Teal. She meant to unleash the Silver Moon Crystal Power, release the animals from their berserker rage. But she didn't notice the thing like a black dire-wolf leaping at her from behind. Ami screamed, already knowing it was too late. A glaive went streaking through the air, its long blade sinking into the creature's side. Its forelegs stumbled and its massive head slammed into Sailor Moon's back. She went down and the dire-wolf fell on top of her. Ami ran as fast as she could. An even faster white and violet streak shot out in front of her. Saturn grabbed the bobbing shaft of her Silence Glaive, twisted it and cut across the soft underbelly, gutting the animal. Half a second later Ami drove a flying kick into the flailing creature's neck, crushing its windpipe. She leaped over its head, grabbed the scruff of its neck and with a cry of effort pulled the still quivering carcass off Sailor Moon's still form. Ami knelt next to her Princess, probing gently with her hands. She willed her visor into existence, and the translucent field wrapped around her eyes. In two heartbeats she had her diagnosis. Nothing broken, no major bleeding, no internal injuries. Brain waves showing wakefulness, just dazed from the impact. Ami wanted just to stand over her and protect her. But it was the rest of them who needed Sailor Moon's protection, needed her power. Ami grabbed her and pulled her roughly into a sitting position. "Usagi!" she shouted. "Usagi, you've got to try it again!" Usagi's eyes were starting to focus again. "Okay ... will ... in a minute." Ami was about to yell that they didn't have a minute when she heard Saturn shout a warning. What could easily have been the dire-wolf's mate was charging them. Two disembowelled things like great wildcats lay at Saturn's feet, indicating what had been keeping her busy in the past few seconds. The second dire-wolf leapt. Saturn drove the butt of her glaive into the ground and angled the blade up. The blade and half the shaft disappeared down the creature's throat, stopping it dead. Remarkably, Saturn stood her ground. One of her hands was practically in its mouth. She wrenched what little of the shaft she still had to play with out of the furrow it had cut in the earth, and with a savage cry yanked her weapon out of the thing's great gaping maw, twisting and cutting as she pulled. It dropped with a horrible gurgling sound, vomiting a great stream of dark blood. Saturn turned to them, her wild, violet eyes locking on Sailor Moon. "I'll guard your back, Princess. Please help us." She faced away from them again, her bloodstained glaive held at the ready. Usagi picked up her teal, which without her will directed to it had reverted to its short length. Ami helped her to her feet, all the while trying to scan for threats. Her eyes caught moments of horror. Venus delivering a spin kick to a razor-fanged dog, snapping its neck. Mars leaping to avoid two creatures who had jumped right through the sheet of flame she had thrown at them, both of them now burning brightly from head to tail and not seeming to care. Saori rapid-firing her gun into the open maw of an injured wildcat trying to limp to one of Saori's fallen comrades. Thetan closing a great wolf in a bearhug, crushing its ribcage. K'Theelm flying one of the policemen out of the grounds, great screeching birds clawing at his shimmering force shield. Three misshapen wolves fighting over the shredded carcass of another policeman. Her companions were all caught up in their own battles, unable to see that they were all being separated, being lost in a sea of monsters alive and dead. Sailor Moon was preparing to unleash her power again, the Teal growing in her hands. Two knuckle-walking baboons came loping at her and Ami, now the most obvious targets in the area. From another direction a pack of something like hyenas came running. They would be here before Sailor Moon was ready, and Ami couldn't get them both. She ran straight out between the two groups of monsters, screaming as she went. It was the worst tactical position but the one most likely to divert their attention from Sailor Moon. It worked all too well. The baboons leaped into the air with a speed that belied their bulk, the hyenas angled in on her. She just kept running. The analytical part of her mind told her she was checkmated, dead no matter what she did. Three globes of light came streaking down like meteors. Gold, blue and silver hit the baboons, the hyenas and a charging sabretooth she hadn't noticed, all within a second. They disintegrated, and Ami was assaulted by the shockwaves of the explosions all around her. Coming under artillery fire must be something like this, she thought. Uranus, Neptune and Pluto landed all around her, seeming to come out of nowhere. Without a word they each faced a different direction and called out their attacks. Earth Shaking, Deep Submerge and Dead Scream went shooting out as three more globes of energy streaking along the ground, cutting great swaths through the swarming monsters. Scores of them screamed and died. Uranus and Neptune immediately ran towards Venus and Mars respectively. Ami saw Uranus run straight at a great horned bull that Venus was trying to dance around. She launched another Earth Shaking at point blank range, literally blowing it in half. Pluto came up beside Ami. "The Princess will free these creatures from their madness," she said, her eyes scanning their surroundings, taking in the scene of horror with implacable calm. Ami turned to look back at Sailor Moon. True to her word, Saturn had guarded her back. She stood atop a pile of felled monsters, her glaive held high. Ami shuddered. This was how Rei must have seen Saturn in her dream years ago, seen her in her guise as the Senshi of Destruction. The pentagram and the Ancients were gone. Takada's spell must have reached its limit, letting its four captives make good their escape. Sailor Moon's long Teal glowed, and a penumbra of silvery light shimmered around her. She threw back her head and called out the words of healing. "Silver Moon Crystal Power!" Light exploded around her. She disappeared behind a dazzling sphere of silvery light that raced out at them, swallowing everything in its path. Ami flinched as it came at her, but she hardly felt it, except maybe as a warm tingling that washed over her body. Inside the swelling sphere of power it was light as day. It flowed around and through everything in its path. The monsters touched by it all glowed a brilliant silver, then suddenly they weren't monsters anymore. They were just cats and dogs and other animals, blinking and looking around as if wondering what had been going on. In a matter of seconds it was over. The ruins of the Animal Kingdom were dark again, lit only by the moon and the stars and a few small fires. The cacophony of howling was gone, to be replaced by nothing but the sound of Ami's own laboured breathing, the blood rushing through her head. The stench of blood and scorched flesh was overpowering. There were voices now. More police and more Suits. Some of the former held assault rifles with flashlights attached. Somewhere in Ami's tangled memory of events was a recollection of having heard automatic weapons fire. Saori's backup trying to fight their way towards their trapped companions. Right now it was the flashlights on their weapons they were using, as they searched among the slaughtered creatures for their wounded. Which was what Ami should have been doing. "Pluto, I should go see if anybody needs my help." "I understand. I'll stay with the Princess, she shouldn't be alone." She was right. Ami had seen the look in Usagi's eyes, the pain of her empathy for the innocent creatures driven to madness by the Ancients' horrible powers. She would be devastated by what had happened, what she had seen. Ami forced herself to focus on the task at hand. Her visor was still in place, she used it to scan her surroundings. Almost immediately she spotted life signs, something alive underneath one of the huge, misshapen corpses. She ran over there. It was a Suit, half visible under the furry bulk that pinned him. Ami put her arms under the massive corpse and rolled it off the man. Smith grinned up at her. "Thanks. Damn, that thing was heavy." "Are you hurt?" Ami asked. Her scans were already showing him to be in fairly good shape. Then she saw his arm, and the great gash dribbling more blood into the already soaked earth around it. "Damn thing got a good swipe at me before it dropped." "I'll take care of it," Ami said. She tore off the already shredded sleeve of his suit jacket and shirt, both exposing the wound and providing her with material for a tourniquet. First priority was to at least slow the bleeding until he could get better treatment. She went to work quickly but methodically. "What exactly was that anyway?" Smith asked. "You mean the light? Sailor Moon did that. It's ... a sort of exorcism." "I thought that was Mars' specialty." "Well, Sailor Moon's power is more like a purification." Smith grunted as Ami tightened the tourniquet. "Sure purified the hell out of this place." "Let's get you up a bit." Ami helped him into a sitting position, leaning back on the dead creature for lack of anything better, laying his arm across it. The bleeding was just a very slow trickle now. She looked around. The police were helping other wounded, it looked like some of them had first aid kits. They were all busy, but they should be working their way over here soon. A few flakes of snow were beginning to fall. She turned back to Smith. "You've lost a lot of blood. Not enough to go into shock I don't think, but I'll stay with you until other help arrives." "Thanks. Your people all okay?" "Yes." She had seen all the Senshi alive and well in the few seconds that Sailor Moon's power had lit up the area. "Really went to hell in a handbasket, didn't it?" Ami had no idea what to say. She focused on something concrete. "What sort of bullets do those guns of yours use?" "That's classified." He suddenly started laughing, but it soon turned into a cough and a wince. "Oh, that hurt. Sorry, automatic reaction. Fact is, I have no idea how they work, we just get these little charms from our Tibet branch. I'm not sure if head office even tells them why we want them exactly zero point four four inches in diameter. We just fit them into shell casings." Ami looked at the .44 Magnum revolver lying on the ground nearby. "Magic and technology," she said softly. "Ever heard of Clarke's Law?" Smith asked. Ami looked at him in surprise. After a moment, they were both smiling. "Yes, I have." "Take my word for it, he's right. It's all just different ways of getting the job done." His attention was diverted by something behind Ami. She turned to see Takada walking over. He was cleaning off the blade of his long katana with a cloth. The Masamune that Rei had talked about. He opened up his overcoat and carefully lowered the blade into a black scabbard that hung under the coat. He crouched down next to Smith and Ami. "I'm happy to see you two alive and well." "You done a head count?" Smith asked. Takada nodded. "Suzuki and Watanabe are dead." "I'm sorry. We got separated." Takada shook his head. "My fault, we walked right into this one. Should have known better." "And Saori's people?" "Four dead. Another one ... probably won't make it." That got Ami's attention. "What sort of treatment is he getting?" "Saturn and Jeneth are with him." "I should probably go see if I can help." She didn't have their healing powers, but her sensors might come in handy. "Go ahead," Takada said. "Everyone else has been accounted for and treated. They're over there." Ami walked in the direction Takada had pointed. She noticed Pluto walking towards her. For a moment Ami was angry, wondering why Pluto wasn't with the Princess like she said. She spotted Sailor Moon, and suddenly she understood. Tuxedo Mask was holding her, speaking softly to her. Yes, of course he would be here, he would have sensed her mortal danger. But not even he had been able to slip in unannounced, not through the hellish stampede the Ancients had instigated. By the time he had fought his way anywhere near her it would have been all over. Pluto and Mercury both stopped and regarded one another. "Why did you come?" Ami asked. "We heard Usagi's broadcast signal," Pluto said. "We guessed you had set a trap for the Ancients." Ami wondered whether Usagi's forgetting to exclude them from the signal had been accidental or deliberate. She suspected even Usagi couldn't be sure. At any rate, there was another matter Ami felt compelled to address. She fixed her gaze firmly on Pluto as she spoke. "Thank you for saving my life." "You're welcome." "I need to go see if I can help Saturn." "Of course." Ami continued on her way, walking quickly. Pluto followed at a respectful difference. Ami hated what she was feeling, the contempt, the coldness. It felt dirty, unwholesome. Regardless of what had happened, it felt utterly wrong. She put that in the back of her mind as she began to assess the scene she approached. Saturn and Jeneth knelt over their patient, a young policeman sprawled on the ground. Ami's heart sank. There was far too much blood. The wounds exposed by the tears in the uniform had been healed just sufficiently to staunch the bleeding. Saturn's touch was now directed to the man's heart. The blue aura around her hands was barely visible, her power was being directed deep inside the man now. The same could be said for Jeneth, her black-nailed hands cradling the man's head, little dim blue auras at her fingertips suggesting at the power she was projecting. They had attracted a small audience with their life and death struggle. Uranus and Venus stood to one side. Two of the officers with assault rifles stood on the other, providing some extra light with their flashlights. One of them had claw marks across the front of his uniform, exposing the flak jacket underneath. They were both spattered in blood. It looked like Usagi's purification had come just on time to save them. But not on time to save their companion. Ami retracted her visor, it had already told her that the man was beyond hope. Jeneth withdrew her hands and leaned back. "I'm sorry, we were too late," she said softly. Saturn shook her head stiffly, still intent on her task. Ami could now see more clearly the signs of the effort she was straining under. She was sweating, shaking slightly, her whole body tense. "No. His heart is still beating." "There's almost nothing for it to pump," Jeneth said. "If you withdraw your power, it will stop." "But I can feel it," Saturn insisted. "I can feel it beating." Jeneth regarded her for just a moment. Then she got up and walked over to the man's other side. She crouched down and very gently laid her hands on Saturn's arms. "Saturn. Saturn, it's over." "No." "Saturn!" The young girl started, surprised at the sharp tone and at having her arms tightly clamped. Her concentration broken, the glow around her hands faded. "You have to let him go." Jeneth stood up, drawing Saturn with her. She stepped over the body between them, all the while keeping a firm grip on Saturn's arms and a firm lock on her eyes. "You have to let this one go." Saturn was still shaking, her breaths coming ragged, almost as sobs. It looked like she was trying very hard not to cry. Her eyes darted furtively back down to the man she had just seen die, but settled back on Jeneth's alien face. Her expression was harder to read without her glamour, but Ami could still see the signs of her compassion. In just the couple of times the two healers had met, they had taken to each other almost immediately. Jeneth wasn't just advising a younger healer, she was consoling a friend. After a few moments, Saturn calmed down a bit. She swallowed and nodded. "Okay. Okay." Ami could hardly believe this was the same death- dealer she had just seen reduce a stampede of screaming monsters to a pile of carcasses. Now she was just Hotaru again. She lowered her hands, and Jeneth let them go. She turned to face the two armed men who still stood watching the little tableau with stoic expressions. "I ... I'm sorry. He's dead." The one whose uniform was shredded just nodded. "Thank you." Whether for telling him or for trying to save his companion's life was not clear. They both seemed determined to maintain an air of grim authority, but Ami could see how spooked they were. Like they had suddenly found themselves on another planet. "You've all helped us a great deal," he continued. He suddenly glared at Uranus. "Though *some* of you could stand to work on your fire control." Uranus returned his stare coldly, her arms crossed. "I missed you by a full meter, just as I intended. It was the two oversized pit bulls coming behind you that I was aiming at." The man didn't seem inclined to respond. He turned and walked away, his companion following close behind. They headed to where Ami could see Saori speaking with another of the armed officers, no doubt to tell her she had lost a fifth man. Ami noticed that Venus looked particularly distressed. She walked over to her, which got her attention. "Venus, are you okay?" "It was just like the first time I fought them, when they made those birds attack me. I should have seen it, I should have seen why they lured us here." Ami shook her head. "Nobody could have guessed they could do this on such a scale." "Could they do this to people as well?" Uranus asked. Ami caught the tone of the question. She was looking for possible threats, wondering if they could trust the people around them. "Maybe," Ami said. "I suspect they had to do something to these animals ahead of time, that's why they were here so long yesterday." "Poor things," Venus said. "I know we didn't have any choice but-" "Don't you touch me!" They all turned to where Saturn's shout had come from, just a couple of meters away. Pluto had just taken a step back, still holding up the hand Saturn had just slapped away, but no longer reaching out. "Look at what they've done!" Saturn said, gesturing wildly around her. "Look at it! Those people are monsters! How could you have helped them? How could you possibly have made friends with them?" She shook with rage. Jeneth still stood behind her, but was not inclined to intervene on a matter between Avatars. Pluto's calm did not waver. "The people who did this are no friends to anybody, not any more. They have been renounced by their own family. The one who leads them has been renounced by his own mother, my friend." "You told us that already," Saturn said, glaring up at the taller Senshi. "What difference does that make?" "The difference is now I don't just suspect it, I know it to be true," Pluto said. "Kaori has told me everything." "So your friend finally told you her name?" Saturn asked bitterly. "I've always know it. But a few days ago we decided to fully confide in each other." "What the hell does that mean?" Venus asked, coming up beside Ami. "My God, you haven't told them our identities have you?" "No," Pluto said, her gaze shifting to Venus. "Only mine, which she already knew." "Oh fine." Venus turned to look at Uranus. "A piece of friendly advice for you and Neptune. Usagi thinks these ESPers are looking to take the soul of one of us, which is the best theory I've heard. Pluto seems to have developed a death wish, I'd suggest you move out of her house before they come calling." Unspoken was the assumption that Pluto's soul being taken was of no concern to her. "Kaori will tell nothing to her son," Pluto said sternly. "I told you, she has renounced him utterly. In fact, she wants to help us hunt him down." "Fine," Venus said. "Did she tell you where he's hiding out?" "She doesn't know." "Then maybe you should tell her thanks but no thanks. We'll just send her his head if she wants something to bury." "How does she think she can help us?" Ami asked. She could tell that Venus was speaking just out of anger, not really thinking about what she was saying. She discretely reached out and took Venus' hand. "Many of the Ancients have the ability to detect the presence of their own at some distance. When their Matriarch hears that the rogues have taken more lives, it is likely she will order a manhunt. They may have more success than we would." It looked like she wanted to say more, but instead she turned her attention to the two people who had just approached. Takada bowed. "My apologies for the interruption. I am Takada, director of the Japan office of the Hidden branch of the Order. This is my colleague, agent Saori Nagashima, whom I believe is known to all of you." So she really is part of the order now, Ami thought. "I believe I have the pleasure of addressing Sailor Pluto and Sailor Uranus," he continued, looking in turn at each of the Senshi he had correctly identified. "That's correct," Pluto said. Her tone and expression implied she was wondering why she should be talking to him at all. "Takada-san and Saori-san have been helping us track down the rogue Ancients," Ami explained to Pluto. "They are part of the same order Mars worked under as a child." "I see," Pluto said. She turned to Takada. "I believe you are acquainted with a woman among the Ancients named Megumi." "And her son Akira, yes," Takada said. "Regretfully, I have not seen either in some time." Ami suspected Pluto was probing him, confirming he was who he claimed. "Perhaps we can change that," Pluto said. "I've spoken with Megumi's sister Kaori. She and I would like to arrange for us to hunt down the rogues together." "So I heard you mention," Takada said. "I'd very much like to talk about that." "Yes, I think we should," Pluto said. "You'll have to pardon me," Saori suddenly said. She turned and walked over to intercept a man who was walking towards the group. Ami recognized him as one of the officers who had been waiting in the alley behind the grounds. One of the survivors. Either Saori really wanted to talk with him or she didn't want him to hear what the others were talking about. Ami also noticed Mars and Neptune approaching from a different direction. She suspected they had been helping with the wounded. "This is probably not the best place," Takada said. "I've called for the cleanup crew, they will start arriving in a few minutes." "Cleanup crew?" Uranus asked. "An emergency response unit," Takada said. "We've worked quite closely with them in the past. Not too many people know about this unit, it was created by the city government soon after the Starlight Tower incident. They specialize in discrete cleanup and disposal at incident sites requiring such attention. My colleague Saori will stay and coordinate their operations with the police, but I think the rest of us should leave here as soon as possible." "You're talking about doing a coverup," Venus said. "Put plainly, yes." "I agree, we should go," Mars said. "I want to get the Princess out of here right away." There was an edge of urgency in her tone, but the sadness Ami saw convinced her it wasn't necessarily Usagi's physical safety she was concerned about. "I'll inform Thetan and K'Theelm," Jeneth said. "If you'll pardon me." "My thanks," Takada said to her. "More than one of the men here owe their lives to you." She nodded and left them. Now that there was no longer an immediate emergency and they were about to go, something else occurred to Ami. "I've been hearing some animal cries," Ami said. "Some were hurt before the Princess could purify them," Neptune said. "I've put down a few that were beyond help." Ami frowned at Neptune's cool tone. She hoped that she would never get to a point where she could even pretend not to be upset over taking a life. But she knew that wasn't fair. She knew Neptune well enough to realize how this would bother her, she was just very good at hiding it. "Our cleanup crew will be able to bring in resources to take care of the rest," Takada said. "Heaven knows the poor creatures have suffered enough already." He turned to Ami. "Mercury, I wonder if I can ask you to tell Pluto how I can be contacted." "Of course," Ami said. "I'll contact you as soon as I have any news of the Ancients," Pluto assured him. "Thank you. Then, if you'll all excuse me." He turned and left. Ami's attention was caught by Saturn walking closer. She had been quiet since her run in with Pluto. Ami could see that she had calmed down. But she looked no less upset. "Setsuna?" Pluto looked a bit surprised at Saturn's gentle tone. "Yes?" "I'm sorry about what I said. What happened here wasn't your fault, I know that." Pluto smiled. "It's very nice of you to try and tell me that. But we both know otherwise. All this blood is on my hands." "No, it's not." They all turned to where Usagi's voice had come from, behind Sailor Pluto. Sailor Moon closed the short distance between them, Tuxedo Mask walking beside her with his arm and cape held around her shoulders. Where the eyes behind his mask were cold as steel, Sailor Moon regarded Pluto with compassion. "I know you could never be friends with anybody who could do ... this." She waved at the scene of devastation around them. "You and your friend were betrayed, it's not your fault." "We allowed ourselves to be betrayed," Pluto said. "I can't expect forgiveness for the suffering I've caused." She looked at Mars while she said that part. "All I can do now is what I should have done in the first place." Without warning she sank down to one knee and bowed. "I am yours to command, my Queen. Though I have no right to ask, will you accept me back into your service?" Ami saw that Uranus and Neptune had done the same. All three of them knelt in identical positions of solemn respect, awaiting the judgement of their Queen. "Pluto ..." Sailor Moon stepped closer to the kneeling Senshi, Tuxedo Mask stepping aside and letting her go. She bent and reached out her hand. Hesitantly, Pluto took it and allowed herself to be drawn back up. Sailor Moon embraced her, closing her eyes and resting her head against the taller woman's shoulder. "You didn't even need to ask." She stepped back just enough to be able to look up into the astonished Senshi's eyes and smile. Uranus and Neptune were still kneeling, but now they were looking up at their queen with wonder and what Ami would describe as desperation. Without another word, Sailor Moon gave them the thing they so desperately needed. She walked over to Uranus, drew her up and embraced her, then did likewise for Neptune. Their faces showed their joy and gratitude more openly than Pluto's had. Uranus seemed on the verge of tears. Nobody spoke, nobody wanted to interrupt this act of absolution. Ami suddenly felt ashamed of having treated Pluto so coldly, ashamed of ever having thought that Pluto's love for their Princess was any less than her own. Theirs had been an error in judgement, that could always be forgiven. Sailor Moon looked around the assembled Senshi and frowned. "Where are Jeneth and the others?" "They're probably gone by now," Venus said. "They weren't hurt," she said to answer her unspoken question. "Takada-san told us we should probably be leaving as well, he has people coming in to clean up here." "Pluto told me somebody had been hurt." Nobody spoke for a moment. Ami realized nobody had told her yet. And it was dark, she probably just hadn't noticed the body lying on the ground a short distance away. Ami released Venus' hand, stepped closer to Sailor Moon. "Usagi, I spoke with Takada-san. Agents Suzuki and Watanabe were killed." Usagi gasped. "Oh no ..." Ami recalled she had only met the two agents once at the Order's stately office, where they had been introduced as two of the men who would be shadowing the Senshi. Like Takada and Smith, she suspected they were working under assumed names. She found herself wondering if they had families, and if so whether they would ever know the true story about how the two men had died. "Saori lost five of the men she brought with her," Ami continued. Sailor Moon looked shocked beyond words. Tuxedo Mask approached and put an arm around her shoulders again. "Usako, we should do as Takada asked and leave," he said very softly. "There's nothing more we can do here." After a moment, she nodded. "Okay. I'd like to see Saori first, make sure she's okay." "She's just over there," Mars said, pointing to where Saori appeared to be talking with Takada and the officer who she had moved over to speak with some minutes earlier. The snow was coming down more heavily now, it was a bit hard to see. Sailor Moon started walking in that direction, but hesitated. Either she was unsure whether to interrupt what they were doing, or was unsure what to say to Saori. But Saori glanced over towards them as if she had been keeping an eye on the Senshi, and she noticed Sailor Moon looking at her. She said something to her two companions and walked briskly towards Sailor Moon and the others. As she approached, Ami could see the anxiety in her expression. Not grief over her fallen comrades, something else had shaken her. Sailor Moon stepped up to her and took her hand. "Saori, I'm so sorry." "Thank you," Saori said. She accepted Usagi's sympathy with grace, but there was obviously something on her mind, something that could actually supersede the grief over her fallen comrades. "I've just had some disturbing news. When we called for backup to help secure the area for the cleanup crew, we found out there is none available. All available units have been called out to seal the airports and to seal off the cities with international airports, including Tokyo." "What?" More than one of them had involuntarily exclaimed all at once. "A pandemic has broken out in the Indian subcontinent. Thousands have died in just a few hours. It's almost certainly one of the biological weapons various factions there have been threatening to use. But it's gotten out of control. It may have even spread beyond the subcontinent." "My God ..." Ami breathed. Just this morning she had heard a news item about people falling sick in the Punjab, but it had been little more than a footnote in the day's events. And now in just half a day it had come to this. Her heart beat faster in response to the cold facts that the analytical part of her mind was calmly feeding her. Even if the virus acted that quickly, if it was so widespread then it could easily have worked its way here by now. It might already be too late. "There are two things I can tell you that aren't generally known," Saori continued. "The first is that we are as certain as we can be that the pandemic has not reached here." "How can you be sure?" Ami asked. "Without full knowledge of the virus or how it was spread, you can't possibly know." "That's the other thing," Saori said. "The director told me the Order and other agencies do have full knowledge of the virus. It is something that was developed in secret by the former Rising Wind. Somebody there must have gotten their hands on it." Ami's stomach lurched at mention of Rising Wind. The company under whose guise Gwendolyn Ingolffson had plotted to put the world under her domination. The Drakon from an alternate reality that the Sailor Senshi had defeated years ago. Lafarge, the man who had come to their aid from that same alternate reality, had warned them of the pandemic she had put in place as her final option. Her doomsday weapon. He thought he had destroyed all traces of it. If he was wrong, then ... "Saori, do you know if anybody has been studying this virus properly?" "Apparently we have," Saori said. "But there's still no cure or vaccine. All we can do is isolate it and let it run its course." Run its course. Even if it was restricted to the Indian subcontinent, that was a billion people. More. Ami felt sick. She barely noticed Venus coming up beside her, barely registered the fact that they were holding hands again. "We're not going to be advertising these facts," Saori said. "For obvious reasons we don't want everybody on the continent knowing that the Japan islands are a close, safe haven. But you can at least try and assure your families that they are safe. You should all go as soon as you can." Just in case we're wrong, Ami could almost hear her saying. Just in case all our days are numbered. "Thank you," Sailor Moon said quietly. She looked to be in shock. "I have to go now," Saori said. She reached out and squeezed Sailor Moon's arm. "It'll be okay." She turned and left. Mars came up to Sailor Moon's other side and took her hand. "Come on, let's go see your mom and dad. They'll feel a lot better if you're there." "Okay," Sailor Moon said. Her eyes were vacant, like she was barely aware of what was going on. Ami thought about something Rei had told her long ago, about how Usagi seemed to have an infinite capacity for empathy, for feeling the suffering of others. Ami shuddered, wondering what it could be like to die a billion deaths. "Take care, everyone," Tuxedo Mask said. He and Mars led Sailor Moon away towards the back entrance to the grounds. "Mercury." Ami turned to see Pluto standing nearby. "I'm going to tell Kaori about what's happened here," she said. "Beyond the immediate need of hunting down the rogues, I think we all need to talk seriously about how we're going to protect our people." "You're talking about the palace," Venus said just an instant after Ami also realized what Pluto was talking about. "I don't believe it. You still think you can save the world with that damned thing, don't you?" "Venus," Ami said sharply. She continued more gently. "Minako, she's right. We have to plan for the worst. And the palace may be more than just a bolthole for us. You felt its power just like I did, even when it was under siege. With that power behind her, Usagi may be able to do things we can barely imagine." "I don't buy it," Venus said. "She can already perform miracles, what more do you expect this palace to do for us?" "The Seed Crystal is an artifact from the time of the Silver Millennium," Pluto said. "It may contain within it knowledge as well as power." "So power is knowledge," Venus misquoted. "Why don't we just rifle through Gwen's old files while we're at it, find out what else we can unleash on the world." "Venus, we should at least talk about it," Ami said. She couldn't understand why her friend was so upset. It was like she knew something the others didn't. "But now isn't the time. We're all tired, we should go home." "Especially you, Venus," Uranus said. "You were almost dropping from exhaustion, when the Princess saved us." Venus' expression softened. "I guess you're right. Thanks for your help. Though you didn't need to be so messy about it." Ami remembered the vision of a monster being hit by the World Shaking, splitting apart in a shower of blood and uncoiling intestines. "I thought you weren't shooting at it because it had a shield." "I wasn't shooting because I'd probably have passed out if I did." "I'm sorry if what I did disturbed you," Uranus said. There was no irony in her manner. Venus smiled sadly. "After seeing what was left of the ones Saturn put down, I don't think anything would disturb me." She suddenly seemed to become aware of Saturn's presence, who had been standing quietly slightly apart from them. "Um ..." "It was to protect the Princess," the young girl said simply. "I would do anything to protect her." "We all would," Neptune said, coming behind her and putting a hand lightly on her shoulder. Saturn turned and smiled at her. "Saturn," Pluto said. She stepped closer. "We are all walking the same path now, the path that you had the courage to choose when I did not. I would ..." For the first time Ami could remember, she seemed to be at a loss for words. After a moment she just sighed. "Hotaru, we've missed you. Won't you come home?" Saturn smiled shyly. "I'd like that." Ami saw it was time to leave them. She squeezed Venus' hand and turned to her. "We should be going." "Right. Luna and Artemis will be getting worried, I should go let them know what's happened." "Take care, you two," Neptune said, waving. "Neptune," Ami said. "It's been a long time since we've gone for a swim." Her look of surprised slowly turned into a warm smile. "Yes, I've gotten out of practice. It's just no fun without you." "You're right, it's just not the same. I've only been doing laps because of doctor's orders." "Are you back up to speed?" "Why don't you come find out? Tomorrow at the usual time?" "I'll look forward to it." As they were walking away arm in arm, Ami caught Venus giving her a look. "What?" Venus leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "Ami, you're a treasure." Ami remembered to wait until she was home before transforming. She and Ryou picked up where they had left off, she telling him about what happened while he worked the tension out of her tired muscles. He had been watching news of the pandemic on TV, but she asked him to turn it off. He correctly judged her mood. When she was relaxed, he just wrapped her in his arms and let her fall asleep. ***** No wonder cops don't have a sense of humour, Minako thought. If I had to do this for a living, I think I'd be crabby too. She looked at her reflection in the window of the building she was staking out, a glass skyscraper that towered over her. She made a face. The disguise pen was making her look like a bookish student. Ugly glasses and everything. She doodled on the sketchpad she held angled in front of her. Artemis peeked out of the bag hung on her shoulder. "I hope nobody gets a good look at that, they'd figure out you're no architecture student." "Hey, I'm getting warmed up, that's all. Just you wait, I'm going to do a rendering of that building over there that will blow your socks off." "I don't wear socks. And that building's ugly." "Then I'll just have to bring out its inner beauty." "Well its inner beauty will have to stay hidden for now, I see our target approaching. Three o'clock." "Got it." She folded the sketchbook closed and casually moved away from the target area. She didn't think Setsuna had any way of seeing through her disguise pen's illusion, but there was no point in taking chances. There was no need to follow her at this point. If she was in this part of town, Minako knew exactly where she would be going. Her favourite club, on the upper floors of this very skyscraper. Five minutes later, Minako entered the building. She looked rather different now. Her jeans and warm jacket had been replaced by a very dark business suit with knee-length skirt and black heels. The tote bag had transformed into a black case, something like what a doctor might carry. The final touch was the shaded glasses. The Interpol badge she flashed looked very convincing. The way Artemis had described it, everyone around her saw what she wanted them to see. However it worked, it was good enough to get her through. They were alone on the elevator as it took them up. "This isn't going to work," came Artemis' muffled voice. Minako hit the bag. "Shut up," she hissed. Not likely they had microphones in the elevators, but you never know. The hostess at the restaurant was also suitably impressed with her badge. "How can I help you?" she asked. "You have a Meiou Setsuna dining here, is that not correct?" "Yes, she just arrived." "I have been assigned to watch her, for her own safety. She is aware of the situation, but it is a matter of some delicacy. She does not wish to upset her dining companion." "I'm sorry, this is very irregular ..." *Yeah, no kidding.* "Miss, this country is under emergency conditions." She leaned closer. "I would like to be able to report that I have received your full cooperation." "Uh ..." "A table where I can see them clearly, but far enough to be discrete." After a moment, the hostess looked at her registry. "Right this way." Takada is right, Minako thought. People in this country really will cooperate with anyone who flashes a badge. She was shown to her table. Minako pocketed the shades as she walked. Their job was done. True to her word, the hostess had given her a table where she could watch from a discrete distance. She just looked once to confirm her target's location. Within seconds a waiter came and she ordered whatever sounded cheapest. Probably will cost more than her monthly food budget, she thought. Goodbye faithful credit card, it was nice knowing you. She heard a soft pop as Artemis forced open the bag sitting on the floor next to her. "This is the stupidest thing I ever heard of," he whispered. "Shut up," Minako whispered back. "It worked, didn't it?" "She's probably already called the *real* police," he said. "No she hasn't. I intimidated her completely. Now shut up and get back in there." A few minutes later, the hostess led a woman to Setsuna's booth. Minako allowed herself just a little smile. *Kaori, I presume.* The lunch went on for over an hour. When it looked like Kaori was about to leave, Minako flagged down a waiter, gave him her credit card and told him she was in a hurry. She got it back in less than thirty seconds, just in time to follow Kaori out. They shared an elevator down to the parkade. Minako had no idea whether these people could read minds. She ran through a few of her tunes in her head as they rode the elevator. Minako walked over to her motorcycle. She was only licensed to ride a low- power bike, hopefully this woman didn't have a Porsche or anything. After a quick look around she morphed back to her student guise. She put her bag into one of the bike's saddlebags. Artemis popped his head up. "You still got her?" "Yeah, I saw her go into a car. She'll be heading by here any moment." She picked up the helmet and put it on. "So she did get here by car. Does that mean she can't teleport?" "Maybe. It sounds like they've all got different powers. Ami was talking to Setsuna about it this morning, she told me a bit about it. Some of them can only teleport from places where it's easier for some reason." She saw Kaori's car approaching. She strode the motorcycle and fired up the engine. They exited the building right after Kaori. Parking cost a fortune, she barely had enough. Traffic was fairly congested, even though the ban on movement out of the city had been lifted this morning. That was a mixed blessing. It made following rather tricky, but it did mean she didn't need to push the little bike beyond its limit. That is, until they got out onto the highway. She doggedly stuck with her prey, going much faster than the bike was really intended to go. Somehow, it held together. Kaori led her along country roads up into the hills. When she pulled her car in to the gate of a walled property Minako just kept driving by, making note of the location. Minako grinned. *Now I know where you live. If you screw us around, you'll be damned sorry.* They were almost out of gas by the time they pulled into the little station. After fuelling up, Minako decided to let her poor bike cool down for a bit. She bought a warm drink at a vending machine and went to sit on a safety barrier by the road near the station, where she could look out over the city below, barely visible through the haze. She opened up her jacket a bit. It was a little warmer today, last night's snow had mostly melted already. Artemis poked his head out of the bag she had brought with her. "That was the bike ride from hell. I thought we were goners." "Well, we got what we came for. We got our insurance." "I'm going to feel damned silly if this Kaori person invites all the Senshi to her house for dinner tomorrow." Minako took a gulp of coffee and milk from her can. "Well if she's prepared to do that then why are she and Setsuna still playing spies? We would never have found them if Hotaru hadn't told us about this club Setsuna likes." Minako had figured that must be the place she would have her meetings with her Ancient contact, and that they would be meeting the day after the disastrous battle with the alleged rogues. She had been right on both counts. "I don't know. I'd like to think Pluto and her friend are coming clean." "I'd like to think so too." She didn't need to add that the jury was still out on that one. Otherwise they wouldn't be here. Now that she could relax from the hunt, her mind drifted to another matter. "I really wonder where this Cyrus character fits in, though. You still think he's for real?" "He definitely knows stuff that only one of us could have told him. Stuff that none of us would just go tell any Tom, Dick or Harry." "Well, he's definitely in the Shibuya listing, like he said. I'm tempted to give him a call. But I think I'll give Setsuna the benefit of the doubt before I go looking for the skeletons in her basement. Give her friends a chance to show us an act of good faith, show us they're really on our side." "How long?" "Couple of days." She finished off her coffee. "Come on, let's hit the road." ***** Shoji and Yui were sitting up in bed, watching the little television. It was almost never used, normally the only television they watched was rented movies on the big television in the living room, and even then only movies that were subtitled for Yui's benefit. He'd always bristled at the fact that Japan had never developed a closed captioning system like the Americans had. Even CNN International was only captioned in English, which didn't do Yui much good. So normally they never watched the news. But it wasn't every day you could sit down and watch a billion people die. **Senpai, how are they getting these pictures?** Yui asked. **From reporters trapped in India or Pakistan when all the borders were closed. They send the pictures out by satellite.** They were grainy, unsteady pictures taken at high magnification from high-flying helicopters. In the worst hit areas the hospitals had long since been swamped. The streets were lined with bodies. **Are they all going to die?** **Probably. They think some areas might have been isolated on time. But there's so many people moving around over there, it's probably hopeless.** The pictures were interrupted by a press conference. The little guy in the suit reading from his paper looked like he'd just gotten all his grey hairs in the past twenty-four hours. Maybe he had. Shoji's jaw dropped open. "By the First Ancestor..." Yui looked up at him. **Senpai, what's wrong?** She must have felt him speak, through the vibration in his chest. **You remember I told you about that city in China that the plague spread to?** **Yeah?** **They just dropped nukes on it an hour ago.** She just looked at him. **Does that mean the plague won't spread here?** **Maybe.** **Is there going to be a big war?** **Maybe.** They continued watching, and Shoji kept up a running commentary. There were rumours of outbreaks all over the place, but it was becoming harder and harder to sort fact from fiction. More and more countries were closing their borders or imposing news blackouts or both. There were rumours of a secret meeting of world leaders where they were performing triage on the world's nations, deciding which areas could be saved and planning to forcibly isolate the rest. There were rumours that the whole thing had been planned as a colossal act of genocide. As the day wore on there were more rumours and less facts. Eventually, Shoji and seen enough. **Yui, we need to talk to my mother.** She frowned. **Why?** **She knows one of the Senshi, I'm sure of it. Knows where to find her. That's the only way she could have known about those aliens and known about Hikawa shrine.** **You still think finding one will help us?** **Yeah, they're the key to getting the palace, I'm sure of it. And we're going to need the palace, maybe real soon. At least one of them has powers like we've never seen before.** After they had teleported away from the Animal Kingdom, Hitomi had watched the rest of the battle through the eyes of one of her possessed doves. Right up to the point where that big ball of light swept over the place and broke the animals' berserker state. **We're running out of time and running out of options.** **But if we go there, your mother will take us to the Matriarch.** She didn't need to say why that wasn't an option for them. **Not if we go at the right time.** **What do you mean?** **Come on, let's go see Akechi and Hitomi and I'll tell you all about it.** They were in the living room, watching the same program Shoji and Yui had been. Hitomi looked scared of what she was watching. They were holding hands, something Shoji had never seen them do before. They looked a little awkward and self-conscious. **What's up, Shoji?** Akechi asked. Shoji told them his plan. It didn't take much convincing. Just a little before sunset, they all put on their jackets and gathered in the big living room again. They took their usual positions around Yui. **Beam us down,** Shoji said. It was a running joke that had worn thin a long time ago, but Shoji thought the time was right to resurrect it. A moment later they were standing in a tiny clearing in woods full of thick underbrush. The rock they had teleported onto was covered with dirt and dry leaves. There was no way to tell it was there if you didn't know. Years ago he and Yui had taken a flagstone intended for one of the gardens, taken it and buried it here. That was back when she could only 'port between two of the specially picked and treated stones. It was one of their secret places. She had teleported them in and out of here so many times she could do it in her sleep now. Shoji pointed. **That way.** **I remember,** Yui said. She applied her power and the underbrush parted before them. Even with that to help it was not easy going. They had to twist and turn a lot, avoiding the thickest bushes. But before the sun could set, they had worked their way to where they could just glimpse a bigger clearing ahead. Shoji turned, and exchanged a nod with Akechi. He moved aside and Akechi made his way through the rest of the underbrush to the clearing beyond. Then he vanished. The three of them crouched down and waited. Just at sunset, Shoji could just glimpse another figure moving into the clearing. In the darkness and through the brush it was impossible to see well, but Shoji knew who it would be. Shoji didn't even see it happen. Akechi's sending was barely detectible, so worried was he about being overheard. **It's done.** The three of them made their way through the bush and emerged into the clearing. Shoji's mother lay peacefully in front of the shrine to the First Ancestor, the one she prayed alone at every day right at sunset. She lay right where Akechi had dropped her. Shoji smiled. "Sorry Mom. This won't hurt a bit." Yui hadn't heard him of course, but she didn't need to. Without prompting she moved over and extracted Kaori's life force. She held it out for Shoji and Hitomi to examine. They both looked for a good long time. "You done?" Shoji asked Hitomi. "Yeah." Shoji nodded, and Yui carefully restored Kaori's life energy to her. With the little kaleidoscope of lights gone, the clearing was lit only by the fading twilight.. **Well?** Shoji asked. **She's going to be meeting with Sailor Moon tomorrow at noon. Some really posh place in Roppongi. She's been there before, I have a clear picture of the building and the room they're going to be in. She hasn't told anyone, not even the Matriarch.** **Matches with what I got. Akechi, can you make sure she's out until tomorrow afternoon?** **Yeah, that should be no problem.** **We can't leave her here,** Yui said. **She'll freeze.** **I had no intention of doing that,** Shoji said. **Can you 'port us directly to that onsen we like around here?** **I can do it, but it'll be harder from here, the shrine has a disruption field around it. The sensitives in the house will probably detect us leaving.** **Now that we're done here, it doesn't matter,** Shoji said. **Why the hot springs?** Hitomi asked. **We're going to book a room for a couple of nights, put up a Do Not Disturb sign and let Mom sleep it off there. By the time she wakes up, we'll have gotten what we want.** Yui looked worried. **Senpai, they won't like what we've done. Even if we've got the Senshi, they won't let us near the Seed Crystal.** Shoji grinned. **I've got an idea, but we'll talk about it later.** End Chapter 12 --------------4F0128CE5B1D-- From - Sun Jan 11 12:22:31 1998 Return-Path: Received: from smtp27.bellglobal.com (smtp27.bellglobal.com [204.101.251.55]) by pop50.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA23118 for ; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:45:46 -0500 (EST) Received: from access.mbnet.mb.ca (root@access.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.11]) by smtp27.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA24335 for ; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:45:42 -0500 (EST) Received: from ts7m-4.mbnet.mb.ca (ts7m-4.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.119]) by access.mbnet.mb.ca (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id NAA10937; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 13:43:57 -0600 (CST) Message-ID: <34B7F9F1.2DF1@mbnet.mb.ca> Date: Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:45:05 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Win16; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 13] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------76803251269D" X-UIDL: 293b72b013b70b1832e161cc8a037230 X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: 15151 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------76803251269D Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com --------------76803251269D Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; name="SECRET13.TXT" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SECRET13.TXT" Secrets Chapter 13 - Retribution Setsuna had shown them to a private dining room looking out over the city. It was not Japanese style as Rei had expected, but western style, with a massive dark wood dining table polished to a liquid sheen, surrounded by four elegant leather chairs. There was easily room for at least two more chairs, but no doubt Setsuna had specified seating for four. It was about time for their fourth to arrive. Rei glanced at Usagi, who was sitting at the end of the table staring out the window. She hadn't touched the appetizer. Actually none of them had. Rei didn't have much of an appetite. Like just about everybody, she and Usagi and Mamoru had spent much of the day yesterday watching the reports of the pandemic. Usagi had been very quiet, which worried Rei. When Setsuna had called to suggest this meeting with Kaori, she had agreed in toneless monosyllables. And Rei couldn't get much more out of her, other than getting her to agree that Rei should come along as well. Rei wanted to see this woman with her own eyes before she would decide whether Kaori could be trusted. Rei had an idea what was making Usagi so unresponsive. Behind all this scrambling and plotting was the silent dread that it was all pointless, that this horror of the Drakon's making would consume them all, leaving a dead world behind. Saori had called them last night, to tell them what the Order had found out, which was precious little. Their various contacts whispered of plans being executed, of hidden order behind the apparent chaos. It seemed that the global triage process was more than just a rumour. "I called my mom this morning," Usagi abruptly said to nobody in particular. "She said Hotaru's at her place today." "Hotaru?" Setsuna asked. Usagi nodded, still staring out the window. "Visiting Shingo." "That's nice of her." It occurred to Rei that Setsuna probably didn't know. "Setsuna, she and Shingo have been seeing each other for two years now." Setsuna did look surprised. "I had no idea." She smiled. "I'd been wondering who this mysterious young man of hers might be." "I wonder if she's going to tell him," Usagi said. "What do you mean?" Rei asked. Usagi finally looked at her. "I mean about being Sailor Saturn. Maybe she wants to tell him the truth, before it's too late." "Usagi, don't," Rei said gently. "What's happening is horrible, but it's not the end of the world. We'll make it somehow." "I was going to tell them," Usagi continued, ignoring what Rei had said. "That night, and then yesterday, I said to myself I'd finally tell them. But I chickened out, just like I always do." "You have plenty of time to make that decision, Usagi. Don't rush yourself." "I'm sure Hotaru isn't going to force your hand," Setsuna said. "She would never reveal something like that without asking you first." She turned to Rei. "So how long have you known about those two?" "We finally figured it out on New Years," Rei said. "She sent Shingo this beautiful-" She heard the little pop just as Setsuna's eyes darted over in Usagi's direction. Rei whirled around and saw the ESPer girl standing beside Usagi. She touched Usagi's shoulder and they both vanished. The two of them were on their feet already, but they could just stand there in stunned silence. Rei shook with fear and rage and panic. It had been the girl who had killed her grandfather. She had Usagi. *They* had Usagi. She looked down on the floor. Her mind had barely registered that the girl had tossed something down before vanishing. Rei went down on her knees and picked up the piece of paper that lay there. She held the note in her shaking hands, her heart racing. She read it. The Princess is now ours, and soon the Palace will be ours. If you try to take either from us, it will mean your deaths. Kaori Rei heard Setsuna come around the table to where Rei was still kneeling, reading and rereading the note. She stood over her. "Rei, what- " Rei had her against the wall in two seconds. "YOU FUCKING BITCH! YOU SOLD HER OUT TO THEM, DIDN'T YOU? YOU LET THEM HAVE HER JUST SO SHE COULD MAKE YOUR FUCKING PALACE FOR YOU!" She threw Setsuna to the ground. They were both panting, Rei from blind rage, Setsuna from complete shock. Rei pointed down at her. "On my mother's grave, I swear if anything happens to Usagi, there will be no words to describe the way I'm going to kill you." She strode to the door and flung it open with a crash. The club employees she passed all shrank back from her. Even the impeccably polite hostess in the lobby thought better than to say anything to her. She rode the elevator alone. By the time she left the building, she had tucked her rage away in the place where it could simmer, waiting to be released only when the time was right. She flipped up the face of her communicator. Mercury was the first one she called. "Ami, we've got a problem." ***** Himiko ate a spartan lunch, as she had for nearly a century. In her childhood it had been forced upon her, not from poverty but from her mother's disdain for personal indulgence. As an adult, Himiko had stuck to her austerity by choice. It had kept her healthy long after most of her many children had passed away. She had never regretted steering the family to a more aggressive engagement of the modern world. But she would be the first to admit the negative consequences. Over the years many of the family had been seduced by the modern world's extravagant wealth and its vast array of indulgences. Many began to grumble at the rules and the discipline that had kept the family together and focused since the long before the beginning of recorded history, to the point where the ranks of the black sheep were swelling. From the beginning Himiko had depended on their shared legacy, the Power, to be the thing that would keep them together, the thing they could never share with any outsider. Only the women could pass down the Power, and it seemed to be such that outsider blood could not dilute it. As always, outsider men had brought fresh blood into the family, but only their children would ever be Ancients. Generations in their hundreds had crumbled to dust, but the Power remained as strong as ever. And now, finally, it might be coming to an end. News of the plague the outsiders had unleashed upon themselves came from people in Sapporo who could do long distance telepathy with their brethren here at the Matriarch's house. The family had always wondered why she was so rigid about keeping the conveniences of the modern age out of her household. It was very simple, really. She wanted to ensure that some core of the family knew how to endure without the outsiders' toys. In case they were not there one day, in case this empire of modern magic collapsed like so many others had. As it might very well soon be doing. Only this time, it might take the Ancients with them. The powers that be were already beginning to claim that their draconian measures had halted the plague's advance, already beginning to declare victory. Of course they had to seal off a fifth of their numbers, condemn them to certain death. Well, it was no different than what Himiko would do, faced with the same choice. In light of what was happening, the news Kaori had brought her yesterday seemed almost trivial. Her son had killed seven more people. Hardly worth the risk and effort of bringing them in. Of greater concern was the risk that their actions might bring the Ancients into direct conflict with these Sailor Senshi Kaori had been telling her about. But supposedly they understood that Kaori's son was a rogue, and they actually wanted to work together to hunt them down. She had agreed to let Kaori go listen to what they had to say. If they really could help bring the Palace into being as they claimed, then in light of recent events an alliance was beginning to look more and more appealing. When she had indicated she had finished eating, the young man who had been acting as her human telephone came into the room and knelt before her. "Matriarch, I bring grave news from the household of your granddaughter Kaori." "Yes?" She had been keeping her eye on the situation in Tokyo. The city had been sealed off for only a day, and everyone was being assured it was as safe as anywhere else in the country, but things were changing now at blinding speed. "Your granddaughter did not return from her prayers at the shrine of the First Ancestor last night. She has not been seen since. They have called all the other households, but nobody has seen her." "What? Have they searched around the shrine?" "Yes, Matriarch. They believe your granddaughter teleported directly from the shrine last night. Several of the people in the house detected it. But nobody knows where she might have gone." Kaori would never teleport from a shrine. It would be an affront to the First Ancestor. "Have Aiko meet me in the Crystal cave without delay." She got to her feet. "Matriarch, I'll send somebody-" "I'm perfectly capable of walking there myself. Off with you." "Yes, Matriarch." He bowed and left, leaving the door open for her. She made her way to the back of the house and exited into the garden. Snow covered the branches of the two great trees, but the garden had been carefully cleaned. She walked to the flagstone beside the cliff and teleported into the caves. She walked down the winding tunnel to the cave of the Seed Crystal. There were several of the precognitives here. Many had been in and out since yesterday, trying to glimpse visions that might help them know what the future held, the future of this world now teetering on the brink. They all bowed to Himiko as she entered. She ignored them. None thought to question the reason for her waiting here. The reason came just a few minutes later, one who in Himiko's estimation was worth all of this lot put together. Aiko held onto the arm of the young man Himiko had sent to fetch her. He led the blind girl over to her. "How may I help you, Matriarch?" she asked. Her white, sightless eyes focused more or less on Himiko's face. Aiko's aura vision could easily locate and identify people she was familiar with. "My granddaughter Kaori has vanished. She teleported directly from her shrine to the First Ancestor and has not been seen since. I need you to tell me what this means." Aiko was silent for a couple of minutes. Then she spoke in a clear but toneless voice. "The son steals the secrets held by the mother. He sends another in her place, to betray a friend." Himiko thought on that for a moment. "Thank you, Aiko. Boy, take her back to the house and then bid all my senior guardsmen to assemble in the main hall." "All of them, Matriarch?" "All of them." He bowed, and gently led Aiko back to the tunnel. Himiko followed them. They had almost reached the tunnel when the shouts of alarm came from behind. Himiko spun around as fast as her old bones would allow. The deaf-mute girl Yui was standing beside the Seed Crystal. She had done the impossible, she had teleported directly into the Crystal cave. She reached out and touched the crystal. There were more cries now, of shock and outrage. "Damned renegade!" the young man behind her bellowed. "How dare you!" Yui's eyes began to glow, and the crystal seemed to glow more brightly to match them. Her lips spread into a feral grin. With her other hand she waved. **Bye be.** She vanished. There was utter silence for a moment. Then Aiko screamed. She could not have seen what happened, but to her aura sense it must have seemed much as it had to those with eyes. It must have seemed like the lights went out. It was still not all that dark, so Himiko's eyes took only a moment to adjust. The Soul Icons did not shine quite as brightly, now they had nothing to resonate with. The cries of panic soon began. **Enough!** Himiko sent out, bringing them to an abrupt end. She could not let them know that she felt exactly as they did, felt as if her whole world had started crumbling around her. She turned around. "Boy, get Aiko out of here and assemble my guardsmen as I instructed." He led the whimpering girl into the tunnel. Before she followed, Himiko took one more look into the cave. Looked at the hole in the cave floor where the Seed Crystal had sat unmoving since the days of the First Ancestor. The hole was deep. The Crystal was bigger than she had supposed. ***** The feeling washed over Mamoru for just a fleeting moment. It was so familiar, the mortal dread at the core of his being telling him that his Princess was in danger, that she needed him. Even after he understood what it meant, why it happened, it had never lost any of its primal urgency. It would send him running to her, guided and driven by a compulsion utterly impossible to deny. But before he could even react visibly, the sensation was just a memory, utterly gone. "Sorry, Mako-chan. For a minute there I thought Usagi was calling me. She's off meeting that ESPer friend of Setsuna's. I guess I'm more nervous about it than I was willing to admit. But Rei is with her, I'm sure she'll be fine." He kept on reading to her, but he continued to be distracted. It must have been his imagination, but it had seemed so real. As he had said, it must have just been nerves. He was just about getting to the end of the chapter he was intending to finish off today, when he heard the door open. "Just a second, Mako- chan." He marked the book, put it on the little table and looked to see who it was. "Rei." He was on his feet immediately, walking over to her. She looked utterly devastated. "Rei, what's wrong?" She took his hand. "Mamoru, they betrayed us. They've got Usagi." "What?" He thought his heart had stopped. He wasn't even sure if he had really spoken aloud. Through the fog of panic and dread, he half heard Rei continue. The despair in her eyes made the calmness of her voice an utter lie. "Kaori never showed up. She sent that girl who killed my grandfather instead. The girl just touched Usagi and they both vanished. It all happened in a second. I've called the others, we're meeting at our place." *All happened in a second.* "Rei, I felt it," he said. "I felt it when it happened, just for a second. But I ignored it. Why don't I still feel it? Why ..." he gasped. She gripped his arms roughly. "No! Don't even think it! If she was gone you would feel it, we both would! You know that! They've just taken her somewhere far away! That's all it means! You have to believe that!" She shook him with each sentence. The tears were flowing down her cheeks. She barely was able to choke out the last words. Then somehow they were in each other's arms, and it felt like she wanted to crush him. "Oh God," she whimpered. "I'm so scared." The shock was slowly giving way to fear. Those monsters had his Usagi. The same monsters who had slaughtered Rei's loved ones, had casually ripped the souls out of holy places and out of people with equal disdain, had turned gentle animals into bloodthirsty monsters. They had his Usagi. His own tears now fell, tears of fear and loss, but also tears of rage at traitors now twice damned. There was only one thing that kept him from breaking down completely, the knowledge of one thing that could save the one who was more than life to him. After a while, after he had calmed himself enough to find the words, he broke their embrace and just held Rei by the shoulders, looking down into her eyes. "Rei, she'll be okay. She's the Princess, she can take care of herself. Even when she has to fight alone, she's always pulled through." "We have to try and find her." "We will. Come on, let's go." He went over beside Makoto's bed again, put the book he had been reading back into his briefcase and snapped it shut. He turned to see Rei standing beside him. "Can you wait just a second, Mamoru? I ... I'd like to talk to Mako- chan." "Sure." He stepped aside to let her come next to their friend lying peacefully on her bed. Rei took her hand. "Mako-chan, I don't know how much of that you heard. These ESPers we've been fighting, the Ancients, they've kidnapped Usagi. I'm sure she's okay, though. They want her alive, so that they can make her create the Palace for them. We have to go find her. I wish you could come with us, we've never needed you more. But I promise you, we'll bring her back to you." She released Makoto's hand and turned to face Mamoru again. "Let's go, the others will probably be there soon." "Usagi?" Mamoru could see from Rei's expression that she had heard it too. A barely audible croak. Her eyes darted about the room, as if she expected to spot some hidden intruder. Then she gasped. "Kami-sama ...." ***** Rei had called her at the worst possible time. The word had just come in, a nerve gas attack initiated by some doomsday cult, hundreds of casualties. They had started to arrive minutes later, and the hellish work had begun. Ami had to keep reminding herself that she was not a doctor yet, no matter how competent she was there were some things she was not allowed to do, had no business doing. She was only here because they desperately needed an extra pair of hands. But as the day wore on, and everyone was getting swamped, the rules and the pecking order mattered less and less. By the time things were starting to get back under control, about the only thing she was not doing was putting signatures on death certificates. Not all the ones that were brought in had made it. On this smaller scale just as on the global scale, triage was just a fact of life. Feeling utterly drained, she fought her weariness and changed quickly. On the way there she called Rei again. "I got out as quickly as I could. I'm on my way." "It's okay," Rei said. "We just got here ourselves." "Did something happen?" "We can talk about it when you get here." There had hardly been any time for it all to sink in. Usagi was in the hands of those killers. She only got the barest outline of what happened from Rei. But she just couldn't believe that Setsuna would actually sell Usagi out to the Ancients. There had to be some mistake, something they were missing. Rei answered the door at the apartment. She looked like she had been crying. She greeted Ami and they embraced. Ami closed the door behind her and turned to face Rei again. Her expression was odd, like there was something she wanted to say but didn't know quite how. "Rei, has something happened? Have you heard anything about Usagi?" "No. But we might know where she is." "What?" "Ami ... why don't you come in, we need to talk for a bit before we go." Her manner was still odd, not urgent or angry as Ami would have expected. Rather than trying to figure this out, Ami just slipped out of her shoes and followed Rei into the living room, peeling off her jacket as she went. Minako and Hotaru were sitting there. Ami looked around. "Isn't Mamoru here?" "He's in the kitchen," Minako said. "Mamoru!" she called out. "Ami's here." So they had been waiting for her to arrive before they started planning. She felt bad about having made the decision to stay at the hospital. She had thought there would be little they could do right away, how had they found out where Usagi might be? Mamoru came into the room, his hand held lightly on the shoulder of his other guest, who walked in with him. Ami's mouth dropped open, and she stopped breathing. Makoto smiled. "Hi Ami-chan." "Mako-chan...?" Makoto nodded, as if trying to assure Ami that she was real. She walked towards Ami. Then Ami's vision swam as tears welled up in her eyes. "Mako-chan!" She practically leaped at Makoto, who caught the shorter woman easily in her strong arms, stepping back just enough to soften the impact. Ami buried her face in Makoto's breast and gave full vent to her feelings of joy and relief, and to the long denied grief that she could finally let go of. She cried just like a little girl, loudly and uncontrollably. In light of this miracle, she could finally admit to herself that she had given up all hope long ago. To her it was just like having a friend come back from the dead. She pulled back and looked up, blinking her tears away, desperate to see her friend's face again. Makoto smiled in understanding. She must have seen the hints of doubt in Ami's eyes. "I'm okay, Ami-chan." She cradled Ami's face in her hands, kissed her forehead. "Honestly, I'm okay." She was slightly hoarse, as if still getting the hang of using her long silenced voice. But Ami could see her friend in the twinkling eyes, the knowing smile. She really was back. Ami pulled her close and crushed Makoto to her breast again. "Onesama," she whimpered. Makoto held her close, stroked her hair. They stood like that for some time, Ami's sobbing much more restrained now. When she was done she stepped back again, but they still held each other. Ami looked to left and right to see all their friends standing around them. Mamoru had an arm around Rei, and Minako was hugging the shorter Hotaru tightly from behind. In all their eyes Ami could see the same expression, the shared joy of seeing their own tearful reunions with Makoto repeated before their eyes. Ami turned her attention back to Makoto. "But how? What happened?" "Rei told me that Usagi needs our help," Makoto said, as if that explained everything. "You ... heard her?" "I think I heard all of you. I may even remember bits of what you were saying to me." She grinned. "Except what you were reading. I remember thinking how nice your voice is, but I had no idea what you were saying. It was so comfortable just lying there, I felt like nothing could ever hurt me again if I just stayed there and did nothing. I probably would have just faded away, if all of you hadn't come to me every day." Ami shook her head. "I'm so sorry, I had given up on you." "But you still came," Makoto said. "Just like everyone else." "It was Usagi who gave us hope," Ami said. "She never doubted that you'd come back to us." Makoto's expression sobered. "That's why I came back. I have to go help her now." Ami frowned. "Mako-chan, you just came out of a coma. You should still be in a hospital." She just smiled. "That's what all the doctors said. I said I'd give them two hours to try and find anything wrong with me. They couldn't." "That's not quite true," Mamoru said. "She's still pretty weak." "Which means she's more or less down to human level instead of an Amazon goddess," Minako said. "And she's barely been able to keep down what little solid food she could eat," Rei added. "We've been feeding her a mouthful at a time." "That's fine," Makoto said. "I'm meaner when I'm hungry, as those bastards are going to find out." That reminded Ami of Rei's earlier statement. "Rei, you said you might know where Usagi's been taken." "Yes, and we can thank Minako for that." Minako flashed a dangerous smile. "Two days ago I followed Setsuna to where she meets that ESPer woman. Then I followed Kaori back to her home. That's got to be where she's keeping Usagi." "But how do you know it was her?" Ami asked. "That girl dropped off a note before she disappeared with Usagi," Rei said. "It was from Kaori." She recited the note from memory. Ami thought about that for a moment. "It sounds like she wants the Palace for herself. She must have betrayed Setsuna as well." Rei's expression darkened. "She did look surprised." That seemed to be as close as she was willing to come to admitting any doubt about Setsuna's guilt. "It doesn't matter," Minako said, stepping away from Hotaru. "We're all ready and we have our target. Let's get going." "Shouldn't we tell the others?" Ami asked. They hadn't had much contact with the refugees or the Order these past couple of days. The latter was not shadowing them at the moment, having lost key agents and having their hands full with other matters. "Protecting the Princess is our job," Minako said. "Besides, Takada is friends with one of them, he may still think we should go bargain with them or something. We don't have time for that." "We can only rely on each other," Rei said. "That's what all this has taught me." Ami had warning bells going off in her head. Somehow this just didn't feel right. She desperately wanted to call Ryou, tell him everything, get his feelings on the matter. But Minako was right, they didn't have time. There was no telling what the Ancients might be doing to Usagi. "Okay, let's go." ***** "I think we should just go there," Haruka said. "Find out what the hell is going on." Setsuna shook her head. "If Kaori really isn't at her home, nobody else there will know me. They would have no reason to tell us anything." "Are you still convinced she's not involved?" Michiru asked. "Yes." Setsuna pointed at the note lying on the coffee table. "That note is not from her. It's nothing but a very crude setup." "Then where is she?" Haruka asked. Setsuna sighed. "I wish I knew." She had been calling Kaori constantly, both at her cellular number and at her home. She had been leaving messages at the latter place. But there had been no response. She was considering calling Takada from the Order, have him talk to Kaori's sister. Maybe she would know something. Of course there was no point calling any of the Inner Senshi. By now Rei would have them convinced she was behind the kidnapping. They would probably just as soon kill her as talk to her. And she had little doubt that Hotaru was with them. "She must have had a reason for missing your meeting," Haruka said. Setsuna had waited there nearly an hour. Kaori never showed up. "Something's happened to her. It's probably her son's doing. In his mind the Palace may be the ultimate sanctuary. He may think it can save him from this plague." "He may have the right idea," Michiru said. "That could be the meaning of my vision. The palace surrounded by darkness. The only refuge of life in a dead world." "So I suppose he intends to ask the Princess would you pretty, pretty please make me a nice crystal palace." Setsuna could easily see through Haruka's sarcasm, could hear her trying to convince herself that Usagi would come to no harm. "Maybe Haruka's right and we should go to Kaori's house," Michiru said. "If she's missing they may be worried about her too. If we tell them what we know, maybe they'll help us try and find both her and the Princess." "It would sure beat sitting around here waiting," Haruka said. "They're very secretive," Setsuna said. "Especially now they might not even let three strangers past the front gate. But maybe it's our only option." Setsuna set the phone to forward any calls to her cellular. She gave Haruka the keys to her Cressida and told her where to take them. She could have traced Kaori's number to her address a long time ago, and most likely Kaori could have done the same. But it was only recently that they openly exchanged addresses. Setsuna had hoped to meet her friend's family under better circumstances. Minutes after leaving the house, her cellular rang. She flipped it open almost before the first ring was done. "Setsuna here." "It's me." "Kaori, where are you?" She spoke quickly but calmly. "I just got home. I was attacked last night. I think it was my son. I woke up in a nearby hotel an hour ago. His friends may have probed me for information." "They did," Setsuna said. "Yui came to the club in your place. She took Usagi." "Oh my God," Kaori said. "I should have seen this coming, I let my guard down." "It doesn't matter now," Setsuna said. She felt bad about being so brusque, but they didn't have time. "Listen to me. I'm on my way there right now, I wanted to enlist your family's help in finding you and the Princess. Your son has made it look like you and I are behind the kidnapping. The only way we will be able to convince the Sailor Senshi otherwise is if we can find the Princess and bring her to safety. You have to talk to the Matriarch, or to anyone who will listen. Tell them that what your son is doing is endangering them all. If you can't stop them and bring them in then the Ancients may be facing a war with the Senshi, the Order, the police, the extraterrestrials and whatever other allies they can gather. If it comes to that then there won't be anything that you or I can do about it." There was just silence for a few moments. Setsuna's words must have had their intended shock value. "I understand. I'll await your arrival, then I'll address the household. Then I'll go see the Matriarch." "I'll see her myself if that's what she wants. You can have my transformation pen as a token of good faith, whatever it takes to make her listen." Haruka turned around and glared at her for just a moment. She obviously did not like what she was hearing. "Setsuna, if your gentle Princess comes to harm I'll never forgive myself." "We need to move as quickly as possible," Setsuna said, trying to ignore he friend's obvious distress. "Can you contact other households, maybe get their sensitives out looking for the renegades right away?" There was silence. "Kaori, can you hear me? Are you still there?" "Something's happening," Kaori said hesitantly. "I sense fear. Something's wrong." Setsuna was wondering what to make of this. Then there was a sound coming over the phone, like an explosion. "Kaori, what's going on?" There was the sound of a sharp impact. Like the phone receiver hitting the floor. Kaori wasn't there anymore. Setsuna thought she heard some other sounds. A muffled staccato. There was static, then the line went dead. Michiru turned around to look back at her. "Setsuna, did you lose the connection?" Her tone implied she suspected it was something more serious. "Haruka, get us there as fast as you can," Setsuna said. She didn't even ask why. The engine roared, and Setsuna was pushed back into the plush upholstery as Haruka brought them up to double the legal speed limit. "Do you have any idea what's happened?" Michiru asked. "Not really," Setsuna said. That wasn't true. She did have a good idea what was happening. But she prayed she was wrong. Even approaching the gate at breakneck speed, it was obviously twisted and askew. It had been blown open, but not enough to pass a car. "Crash the gate," Setsuna said. "Right." Haruka would know about the enhancements to the car, including the solid steel bumpers. She slowed down just enough to be able to turn into the drive without losing control. Which for a driver of her calibre meant she hardly slowed down at all. Setsuna braced herself, wishing she had thought to transform into Pluto first. The impact was not quite enough to drive her face into the front seat. The gate flew open and Haruka tromped down on the accelerator, sending them speeding up the twisting, tree-lined drive. "I see smoke up ahead," Michiru said. "We're too late," Setsuna said. "Haruka, slow down. We don't want to appear as a threat. They'll be panicked enough as it is." "Panicked by what?" Haruka asked. "We'll see soon enough." They came out of the woods and onto the vast open space that surrounded the sprawling house. Setsuna leaned forward to get a better look through the windshield. It looked like the aftermath of a terrorist bombing. An entire wing of the house was just smouldering ruins. There were people lying all over, others who appeared to be helping some of them and others just standing or wandering in a daze. Two men came running down the gravel road towards them. They looked anachronistic, with traditional workman's half-kimonos and sandals. "Stop here," Setsuna said. When Haruka had complied, Setsuna opened the door and stood up behind it. The men came to a stop a few meters away. "What business have you here?" one of them asked. His accent suggested one of the northern provinces. "My name is Setsuna. I am a friend of Kaori's. I was just speaking to her on the telephone, but we were cut off, it sounded like there was trouble. I can see that there was. Can you tell me if Kaori is well?" "She is unhurt." "Do you want us to fetch help for your wounded?" Setsuna asked. "No, that won't be necessary." "Then may I please see Kaori?" The man hesitated. "She told us to admit you when you arrived." He obviously did not like the idea. "You'll have to follow me." "Thank you." She closed the door. She turned to Haruka, who had opened her window. She was looking a bit shell-shocked. It must be dawning on her what had happened here. "Let's go." "No," the man said. "The others wait here." Setsuna nodded. "Very well." Haruka snapped out of her shock in an instant. She fixed Setsuna with a cold stare. "You sure?" she said, barely audible. "I'll be fine." Setsuna walked towards the men, and the one who had been speaking turned to lead her down the lane. The other stood on the driveway as if he could bar the automobile's way with his own body. The first man led her through the thick of the carnage. There were not as many dead as she had originally supposed. And the injuries were different than she would have expected. The wing of the house in front of her had clearly fallen under Senshi attacks. But the people being comforted, tended and watched over by their brethren mostly seemed to have fallen from physical attacks. They nursed hurt or broken limbs, or what were probably broken ribs. It made sense actually. Setsuna could imagine Mercury advising the other Senshi, applying her cold, mechanical logic to the tactical situation. *Move in close and engage them hand to hand. Pit our strength against their weakness.* Some of the Ancients had powers to rival their own, but in a close fight none of them could hope to match the speed and strength of a Sailor Senshi. The dead ones were probably the ones who had the most dangerous powers and had the chance to display them. Most of those had grieving family around them. Setsuna's eyes were drawn to one man in particular, his sightless eyes staring up into the grey sky, his expression showing nothing so much as astonishment. Setsuna shivered. He had been gutted with a large blade. The Silence Glaive, no doubt. She could imagine the sight he had taken to his grave, a delicate young wisp of a girl who moved almost too fast for the eye to see, wielding a pole-arm as if it were a rapier. The man led Setsuna into a wing of the house that had been untouched. Even here, injured and bewildered Ancients huddled together. The ones that noticed her passage reacted to her in a variety of ways. Indifference or fear or puzzlement or suspicion. None questioned the man who led her. She had noticed a few other men similarly dressed, they more than anyone appeared to be taking charge of things. The man led her up a set of stairs and down a hallway to a door. He stopped in front of it and turned to face her. "You will approach no closer to her than I do. She may trust you but I do not." Perhaps he knew that she was a Sailor Senshi. His feelings were understandable. "I understand." He opened the door and she followed him in. It was a casual family room. Kaori was sitting on a couch. She looked dazed. An old man had an arm around her shoulders, and was holding her hand. The man leading Setsuna moved in front of them, but kept some distance. True to her word, Setsuna simply stood beside him. It took a few moments for Kaori to notice them. "Setsuna ...?" "Kaori, are you hurt?" She just shook her head. She wasn't being strictly truthful. Setsuna could see bruises on her face. But her physical pain was nothing to what Setsuna was seeing in her eyes. Through the haze of shock she seemed to finally glean the fact that her friend had come to see her. "I'm sorry ... Setsuna, this is my father." The man regarded her with a grim expression, but one that held more sadness than anger. Kaori had talked a bit about her father in recent weeks. She had painted a picture of a quiet, gentle man who cared for little but gardening, poetry and bird watching. "Can you tell me what happened?" Setsuna asked. Kaori shook her head. "I ... I don't think I can." "I saw it," her father said. They looked at each other briefly, an exchange that may or may not have been telepathic. Kaori just bowed her head, letting her father take the burden from her. He looked back to Setsuna. "I was in the garden when they arrived. Like a children's story come to life, five of the Sailor Senshi and one man all dressed in black." "Five?" Setsuna asked. "Was one taller than the rest?" "Yes. There was one in green, half a head taller than any other save the man." *Jupiter.* "What did they do?" "They arrayed themselves in front of the house, like a besieging army come to challenge the castle walls. People came out of the house and the gardens, myself included. The one with light hair like a foreigner, she addressed us with a voice full of anger. She accused us of things we had no knowledge of, demanding the return of somebody we did not know. Some of the young men gathered in front of them, demanding that they leave. The girl who spoke shouted that she would show us that they 'meant business.' She pointed over our heads, and a bolt of light jumped right out of her finger towards the house. It destroyed a chimney. One of the young men must have thought it a precursor to an attack. Somebody ... I'm not sure how to explain." "I understand about the powers of the Ancients," Setsuna said. He did not react to that news other than to continue. "Somebody attacked them with a plasma bolt. But it bounced off a shield they had set up in front of them. They reacted immediately. It was like the elements themselves were assailing us. Fire and water and lightning and sunlight all rained down on us at once. Most of the people in front of them had time to put up shields, but even they fell before the attack." He paused. He was no longer able to meet her gaze. "Then they were among us. They were everywhere and nowhere. I was knocked to the ground with little more than a touch from one of them. They headed straight for the house, all leaping in through windows, shattering them. I could hear them attacking the ones within. All I could think was, thank the First Ancestor I did not hear the scream of children. They had already been taken to safety. Those of us who resisted them were put down with crippling blows too fast to see. Those who resisted most strongly were killed. The part of the house they swept through caught fire. They might have levelled it all, had my daughter's call not come. She sent out a signal for us to throw ourselves to the ground in surrender. The Sailor Senshi stopped their attack when they saw this. In fact, the one in blue even saw fit to douse the fires they had set. They were rough with those they helped from the ruins, but no longer provoked they did not go out of their way to harm anyone. They gathered in front of the house again, calling my daughter by name, demanding she show herself. When she presented herself, the one in red spoke for the first time, demanding the return of one she called the Princess. Kaori tried to explain that no such person was here, that she knew nothing of the matter. This simply enraged the woman further. She screamed that it was all lies. She shook Kaori, hit her, threatened to kill her. I am sure that she would have done it. But the man approached them. He had eyes that were utterly cold, wore a formal outfit from another century, bore himself with the pride of one with old memories. I thought him surely one of the vampyre, and these women the furies he held under his thrall. But rather than goading her on, he spoke gently, showing the enraged woman that Kaori must be telling the truth. They all seemed to come to this realization. They said little, but the news affected them deeply. They may have felt some regret for what they had done. But I believe what bore most heavily on them was that the one they were seeking was not here, their thoughts were for her. "It was at this point that men from other households began arriving. Somebody must have gone to seek their aid. Seeing this, the one with light hair called for the others to leave with her. They left as they had arrived, bounding across the field far too quickly for any to even think of pursuit. With them gone, all thought turned to helping those who had been hurt. I brought my daughter here. That was but minutes before you arrived." Setsuna nodded. "They realized too late that your grandson is the real culprit." "I have no grandson," the man said with an icy voice. Kaori finally looked up. "Setsuna, it wasn't their fault. They were set up, just like we were." "By now they are looking for Shoji and his friends, looking for our Princess," Setsuna said. "That is what we should be doing." "How do you know what they would be doing?" The man next to Setsuna asked. She looked at him, her expression grave. Suddenly his eyes went wide. He practically leapt away from her, putting himself between her and the others. "You're one of them! You're one of those demons! By hell, I ought to kill you where you stand!" He suddenly jerked, as if having been struck. He turned to face Kaori, who was looking at him with a pained but stern expression. "How could you have let her in here?" The man asked her. "After what they've done!" "Enough," Kaori said. "Move aside." After a moment, the man did as he had been ordered. "Setsuna, I'm sorry but I think you should leave." Setsuna looked down at her. "Kaori, is there no hope?" She shook her head. "We've failed." Setsuna tried to think of some way to turn this tragedy around. But Kaori was right, they had come to the end of the road. There was no way to salvage this. Kaori addressed the man, whose eyes never strayed from Setsuna for more than a moment. "See to it that she is taken safely from the grounds." She met Setsuna's eyes again. Setsuna could read her old friend's face like a book. She knew what Setsuna knew. There was no avoiding a war between their people. The two of them might never see each other again. Setsuna had little idea what she could say. **Yui has taken the Seed Crystal.** Setsuna blinked. She hadn't known Kaori could do that without their touching. "Goodbye, Setsuna." "Goodbye, Kaori." **Take care, my friend.** The man seemed reluctant to turn his back on Setsuna. She solved the problem by preceding him from the room. There were more men in peasant clothes and less chaos now. They all eyed her suspiciously, but none challenged them. They made it back to the car unmolested. The man's counterpart had not moved from his place in front of the car. "We're leaving," Setsuna said to Haruka as she passed by. Haruka started the engine without any further prompting. Setsuna got into the back seat again, and Haruka turned the car around. Setsuna could see her eyes in the rearview mirror, she seemed to be spending most of her time watching the mirror warily, even when they were making their way back down the wooded lane. While they drove, Setsuna gave them a shorter version of the account Kaori's father had given her. "I didn't think they had it in them to do such a thing," Michiru was moved to say. "They're frightened and desperate," Setsuna said. "They're much closer to the Princess than we are. I think that's true of Hotaru as well now. They're lost without her, and they will stop at nothing to get her back. And they've learned the lessons we've taught them, learned them all too well. They'll show no quarter to anybody who they even think might keep them from getting her back." "But they must realize now that you had no more to do with her kidnapping than your friend did," Haruka said. "I'm not sure that matters," Setsuna said. "I've sowed the seeds of mistrust, and now we are all reaping the results." "Surely they'll accept our help," Michiru said. "It's a matter of the Princess' life. Nothing could be more important to any of us." "They acted alone today," Setsuna said. "I doubt they've even told the refugees or the Order about what they planned. They no longer fully trust anybody but each other. That must be why they went to such effort to track down my meeting with Kaori." Michiru frowned. "What?" "That must be how they found Kaori's house. I even have an idea when it happened. There was a person near us at our last meeting who might have been one of the Order, or maybe even one of the Inner Senshi using the disguise pen. They've been betrayed once too often. They're closing ranks." "Setsuna, how much about us did you tell Kaori?" Haruka asked. "I know what you're thinking. She knows enough to be able to locate us, but she will die before she reveals that information. Despite what has happened, I'm quite certain their Matriarch will concentrate her efforts on locating Kaori's son, rather than trying to retaliate against the Senshi. She must realize it is his actions that are driving events. And I can only imagine how they regard the theft of the Seed Crystal. Next to that, a few deaths are probably inconsequential." "If they find the Princess first, what do you think they would do?" Michiru asked. "I wish I knew. I'm sure Kaori will do everything she can to ensure her people that the Princess is no threat to them. But she may or may not be able to do that." "They may decide they want the Princess for the same reason as the ones they're trying to hunt down," Haruka said. Setsuna sighed. "That's a definite possibility." Little more was said on the way home. It seemed there was little they could do. Setsuna considered calling the refugees or the Order. But it was probably best they learned of these events from the Inner Senshi, with whom they were much closer. Assuming that had not already happened. Not long after they got home the telephone rang. It was Setsuna who answered it. "Hello Setsuna. It's Daniel." It was the last person she expected to hear from. "So, you tracked me down." "It wasn't easy. But I've been living under false identities since the birth of writing paved the way for government bureaucracy." "Actually, I've been thinking of calling you. A lot has happened since we last spoke." "I know. Our old friend Artemis has been telling me all about it." Setsuna was only mildly surprised. "So you've found them too." "I ran into Artemis quite by accident and told him how to contact me. It wasn't until today that he decided to actually speak with me. He told me the other Sailor Senshi just launched an attack on the Ancients." "I know. I tried to stop it, but I was too late." "I promised Artemis I'd do what I can to help. Can I come over?" Setsuna sighed. "I'd like nothing more than to see you again. But I've messed things up about as badly as I possibly could. I'm not sure either of us can do anything at this point." "We'll talk about it." ***** Minako wanted to die. She had never felt such shame and regret in all her life. Years ago, she had once felt something like this. It was after she had allowed herself to be seduced by Ingolffson, after she had realized just what the Drakon had been compelling her to do. And now her lack of judgement had cost innocent lives once again. They had gone their separate ways soon after moving a safe distance from Kaori's house. Mamoru and Hotaru took Makoto to go and brief her more fully on what had been happening while she was in a coma. There were people who had to be told about what happened. Rei went to inform Takada, Ami to inform Jeneth. Minako did not envy either of them their tasks, but as far as she was concerned she had the worst of it. She had to go home and tell Luna and Artemis of her folly. She had to tell them how she had gone off half-cocked and led the Sailor Senshi to murdering innocents. They had been shocked, but not angry at her as she had expected them to be. Minako had told the others she would call Setsuna, but confessed to the two cats that she could not bring herself to face the woman she had called traitor. Artemis had solved the problem by suggesting he contact Setsuna's mysterious friend Daniel. They had listened in on the conversation over Minako's speaker phone. Daniel agreed to see Setsuna, he seemed to think he could help in some way. They weren't exactly sure how, but they were content to let him pass the news on to Setsuna and the others. When Minako showed up at Mamoru's apartment with the two cats in tow, all the others were already there. Hotaru was applying her healing touch to Makoto's wrist again. Jupiter hadn't even told them about her broken wrist until after they were safely from Kaori's house, much to Hotaru's distress. She had mended the broken bones on the spot, but said she was still working on the surrounding tissue, getting the swelling down. That had been the worst of their injuries, but none of them had gone unscathed. Despite their following Mercury's advice on close combat, some of the Ancients had managed to get a few shots off. Individually, some of them gave as good as they got. If most of them had not panicked and run, if their defense had been at all coordinated, the outcome could have been very different. The others confirmed they had performed their tasks and come here as agreed. Rei said Takada had seemed more disappointed than angry. And of course as far as the refugees were concerned it had all just been a tragic mistake, the Avatars could do no wrong. Minako told them about Daniel. Nobody commented on the fact that she and Artemis had not told anybody about him before. Of course she had been wary of telling even Hotaru about him, that was just symptomatic. Just another thread in the web of deceit. They had just been sitting watching CNN. Victory against the pandemic was being tentatively declared. Those responsible for unleashing the plague had designed it to run its course quickly. Nobody could even guess at the death toll yet, though it was certainly in the hundreds of millions. In many places the quarantine of the infected region was being assured by what they were politely referring to as "chemical interdiction." Entire borders would be unapproachable for days because of the volume of deadly poisons that had been dumped there, in fear that any infected people would slip through. Minako wondered when somebody would start talking about it. Eventually she just couldn't stand it. "My God, what have I done?" "It was a mistake," Makoto said. Following Ami's advice she was repeatedly squeezing a tennis ball with her sore hand. Her voice still had a bit of a rough edge to it, as if she had a sore throat. "That bastard set up his own mother to take the fall for what he did." "And I fell for it," Minako said. "We all did," Rei said. "I believed what I wanted to believe, just as they intended." "They played on our love for Usagi," Makoto said. "They knew we'd lash out at anyone we thought was harming her." "It's no excuse," Minako said sharply. "Usagi would never have just gone in there shooting the way I did. I didn't even give them a chance to explain themselves." And I killed one of them with my own hands, she thought. The girl who had tossed Jupiter against a wall with an invisible force blast had looked barely sixteen. She hadn't even seen Venus until after her sternum had been driven into her heart. Maybe she hadn't seen anything at all. Her face was about the only thing Minako had been seeing since then. "We were all tricked the same way," Ami said, putting a hand lightly on her leg. "We had to act on what information we had. And we did give them a chance to explain, it just went badly, that's all." Minako looked into her eyes. No Ami, you're not fooling me, she thought. I saw the doubt in your eyes. If it had been you leading us, you would have checked your facts first. And we both know it, that's why you feel sympathy but no shame. Minako did not say any of these things, she didn't need to. "We need to get her back," Rei said. Minako was struck by the simple declaration, one without urgency or desperation. Minako saw that Rei was avoiding looking at her. Then she understood. "But where do we even look?" Makoto asked. "That's not what Rei means," Minako said. "Without Usagi, we've lost our way already. Without her to guide us, we're just loose cannons. We're just killers." She realized that without even thinking she had been examining her open hands, as if expecting to see blood dripping from them. With an effort she looked across at Rei instead. The expression on her face confirmed Minako had been right about her meaning. Ami squeezed her leg gently. "Mina-P." Minako looked into her stern face. "I want you to answer a question honestly. If Usagi could have saved all those millions of people who died in the plague by giving her life in exchange, would you want her to do that? Would you let her do that?" The answer came to her immediately. Minako was shocked at the answer she found in herself. She looked away. "No," she whispered, shaking her bowed head almost imperceptibly. Ami came closer, put an arm around her. "Minako, I feel the same way. I have no idea what I would do in a situation like that. I'd like to think that I would do the right thing. But I already know how I would feel. I would want to protect her, no matter what the cost, even if she didn't want it. That's nothing to be ashamed about. As long as we think about what we're doing, we have nothing to feel guilty about." "But I didn't think," Minako said bitterly. Ami took her hand. "Minako, we made a bad mistake. We're going to make more. We're in a war, and innocent people are probably going to get hurt no matter what we do. Usagi told us a very long time ago, if we know we tried to find the best way, that should be enough. Maybe we could have done a better job, but we did try to get her back without hurting anybody, we really did. We're not gods, we can't expect to always just go out and make everything better." Ami still held her tightly. Minako just leaned a little closer until their heads were touching. "I just hope she's okay," Minako said very softly. "If they were hurting her, I would know it," Mamoru said. "No matter how far they had taken her, I'm sure I would know it." Nobody spoke. Minako looked around at her friends, and came to the conclusion they were all thinking the same thing. They might have to just wait until the rogue Ancients tried to harm or kill Usagi, then Mamoru's instinct would lead them to her. But would it be on time? "She'll know that we're looking for her," Hotaru said. "She'll find some way to lead us to her. When we know where she is, maybe we can teleport right there." "We probably can," Ami said. "We've done it without Usagi before." The doorbell rang. "That'll be dinner," Mamoru said, getting up. "It's past dinner time and most of us haven't even had lunch, so I ordered something in." Eating dinner was surprisingly comforting, even with Usagi's disappearance hanging over their heads and the news reports of the unimaginable catastrophe coming in over the television. Ami fussed over just what and how much Makoto should eat. It actually made Minako smile, seeing her practically hand feeding the taller woman. As Jupiter she had more than held her own, but it was obvious she was still not at her full strength. Her presence was about all that kept Minako from falling into utter despair. Minako was beginning to realize just how much she had been missing Makoto, missing both her warmth and her strength. They were just about finished cleaning up after supper when the doorbell rang again. Mamoru went to answer it, and came back into the kitchen just a few moments later. "Minako, there's a man at the door claiming to be Daniel Churchland. He asked for you by name." Minako frowned. "Setsuna must have told him my name." "And told him where we'd probably be," Rei said. She did not look happy. The tension in the room suddenly went up. Artemis leaped up onto the kitchen counter. "He must have gotten back into Setsuna's favour, if she's telling him all that," he said. "When I met him, he was snooping around her house just like I was." "Did he say what he wanted?" Minako asked Mamoru. "Only that he had some news from Setsuna." "You figure we should hear him out?" Makoto asked. "Since he's here, we might as well," Minako said. "He already knows about us, and now he knows at least Mamoru's identity and mine, I guess there's not much point hiding the rest." "He had an odd look on his face," Mamoru said. "Almost like he recognized me." "He claimed to have met me before," Artemis added. "Maybe he met us all ..." Rei said. She had a faraway look in her eyes. Minako knew how she felt. They already knew somebody from the Moon Kingdom, but somehow they all thought of Setsuna as being ever unchanging. For somebody other than the Guardian of Time to really be that old, it was just unimaginable. "At any rate, I'd better go let him in," Mamoru said. "Maybe I'd better go, since he asked for me," Minako said. She walked over to the hallway. The man standing patiently in the entranceway was a tall caucasian with wavy brown hair down to his shoulders. He bowed as she approached. "Good evening." "Good evening. I'm Minako." She wasn't sure what, but something in his look or his manner was reminding her so much of Setsuna. He had the expression Mamoru had described, of recognition. "I suppose Setsuna told you who I really am." There was just a hint of a smile. "Even if she had not, I could hardly mistake you. Your new parents' blood has left its mark, but even if my memories are faded I still see the same Sailor Venus I knew so long ago. Setsuna told me nothing but your name, but in fact I had already heard of you. I see you're still fond of singing." "Yes ..." Minako answered, surprised at the statement. "I didn't think that would have changed." Minako really wanted to ask more about that, but now was not the time. "You'd better come in, everybody's waiting. I'll take your coat." "Thank you." She led him into the living room. Everyone was sitting except Mamoru, who stood waiting to greet his new guest. "I'm Chiba Mamoru," he said. "Endymion," Daniel said. "I wasn't sure, I had only met you a few times. Relations with the Golden Kingdom were already strained when I served Queen Serenity." He chuckled at the blank looks he got. "Forgive me, but seeing you is stirring up some very old memories, and I tend to ramble at such times." "Well, you should know everybody here," Minako said. "In a manner of speaking," she quickly added. It had not been a challenge, she had just said it without really thinking how odd it would sound. "I believe so." He looked first at Ami. "Mercury." "Yes," Ami said. "I'm Mizuno Ami." "I remember you as a gentle scholar, your wisdom was without equal. This new age of wonders must suit you well." "I ... suppose it does," Ami said hesitantly. Minako could guess how she felt. It was very odd, talking to somebody who knew you before you had been reincarnated. He looked at Makoto. "Sailor Jupiter." "Yes. I'm Kino Makoto." "When I was searching for the Sailor Senshi, I had thought to find Jupiter among the ranks of the world's athletes or adventurers. You were always the one to push yourself beyond even your own great endurance." Makoto smiled. "I guess I chose a different path. I own a restaurant." He raised an eyebrow. "Indeed? It must be truly exceptional, you were never one to be satisfied with halfway measures." "Yeah, I tend to be pretty stubborn." He looked next at Rei. "Mars." "Right. I'm Hino Rei." Daniel frowned. "Then it was your grandfather who died at Hikawa shrine." "Yes." "I'm very sorry. I imagine the others who died must also have been known to you." The pain showed only for a moment. "They were ... friends of mine, yes." He turned to Hotaru. "Forgive me, but I must suppose that you are Sailor Saturn." "Yes. I'm Tomoe Hotaru." "I never had the pleasure of meeting you," Daniel said. "In fact neither had anybody in the Moon Kingdom, you were something of a legend. Your awakening was always thought to be a harbinger of great change, of endings and beginnings." "I serve the Princess," she said simply. "That's the only destiny I care about now. I will shatter worlds in her defense if I must." For the first time Minako saw Daniel's implacable calm waver just slightly. He had been reintroducing himself to people he had not seen in millennia as if it were the most normal thing in the world. But what Hotaru had said seemed to have disturbed him. She could hardly blame him, he probably knew as well as they did what the Senshi of Destruction was capable of doing. He turned his attention to the two cats sitting on the coffee table. "Luna, Artemis, cold sleep seems to have treated you well, you both look the same as ever. Artemis, we only spoke briefly, but I could tell you've changed little. When we first met you had me fooled, I thought you really didn't remember me." "Well, I'm not sure that I did," Artemis said. "Our memories of that time are very incomplete. We were barely able to recognized the Sailor Senshi when they awakened. But the more you talk, the more I think I should know you." "I agree," Luna said. "In fact, I remember you being a friend of Pluto's, though I certainly can't recall your name." He smiled sadly. "I was called Cyrus back then, and she was called Ferine. She discarded that name when she became Pluto. That was when we went our separate ways." "You said that you had news from her," Mamoru said. He indicated the chair at the end of the coffee table. "Won't you sit down?" "Thank you." He walked over and sat down as invited. Minako and Mamoru also took their seats on opposite couches. Then Daniel continued. "Setsuna arrived at Kaori's house with Haruka and Michiru shortly after you had left. She was able to talk to Kaori and find out what had happened." "So they already knew," Minako said. She was troubled by a picture that suddenly came into her head, a picture of Setsuna showing up at her friend's house only to see the charnel house her sisters had made of it. "Yes," Daniel said. "Both she and Kaori understand that you were victims of a terrible deception. I believe Kaori told you how her son found out where the Princess would be." "Yes, she did," Rei said. "Though we still can't be sure how much of it to believe." "Setsuna believes it to be true," Daniel said. "It's very unlikely that Kaori would be able to lie to her even if she wanted to." "From the sounds of it they were lying to each other for years," Rei said. "They told each other half truths for many years," Daniel said. "That's quite different. Be that as it may, I believe Setsuna is right. At least she sincerely believes that only the rogue Ancients are responsible for the kidnapping." "She's lied before," Rei pointed out. "She cannot lie to me," Daniel said. "And why not?" Rei challenged. "She wouldn't even tell you where she lives, you said you had to find that out for yourself." "I'm not saying she trusts me with the full truth, I'm simply saying that I would be able to tell if she were lying. Just as I can tell if anybody is lying. It's a gift I developed in the Moon Kingdom and have perfected over the centuries." "Interesting," Rei said. "How does that work? If my grandfather had your gift, would he have known who I am? Or would he still have died without knowing?" "He did find out, before he died," Daniel said. Rei glared at him. "Only at the very end. I was very ashamed of having kept it a secret." "No, you were very proud that he finally knew." "I was going to tell him. I was planning to tell him at the same time I told him that Yuichirou and I would be getting married." "Yes, you were." "And my Father as well." "No, you would never tell him." "Why not?" "I don't know." "Is it because I think he drove my mother to her grave?" Daniel regarded her with a neutral expression. "Shall I answer that?" "Go ahead." "Rei," Mamoru interrupted. He put a hand on her shoulder. "I think you've made your point." She looked at him, then back to Daniel. "I apologize. That was uncalled for." Daniel smiled. "If you wanted to test me, we could just get a deck of cards and play poker for a while. I used to make a great deal of money that way." "I can imagine," Minako said. "You'd really clean up. So how are you making your money these days?" "I spend much of my time working as a private tutor," Daniel said. "Though that's mostly for personal reasons. I have little need to work for a living these days. I invested my ill gotten gains a long time ago, and compound interest is a truly marvellous thing." "Did Setsuna tell you anything else?" Mamoru asked. He looked like he wanted to get the conversation back on track. "Just two things. The first is something Kaori told her. The rogues have stolen the Seed Crystal. Judging by what Kaori has told her these past few weeks, they would consider that a crime far worse than murder. They will be hunting down the rogues just as mercilessly as you will." "That confirms why they wanted Usagi," Ami said. "They must think she can make the Crystal Palace for them." "That makes sense," Daniel said. "In a perverse way, I suppose we can regard that as good news. It means they would be unlikely to harm her." "You mentioned two things," Minako said. "Yes." His hard, all-business expression softened. "And this last point I would know to be the truth, even without my gift. She said to tell you that she loves you all very much, and that she would gladly give her life today if that would undo all the grief that her capital errors have brought upon you. She knows that she dare not ask, but the thing she wishes for above all else save the safety of the Princess is your forgiveness." It was Rei who broke the silence first. "I've already condemned her once when I shouldn't have. More people have died because of that. Usagi has always been able to forgive even her most bitter enemies. I'm willing to follow her example." "Me too," Minako said. "Her mistakes were no worse than mine. People in glass houses shouldn't throw bricks." "If she wants to help Usagi, that's good enough for me," Makoto said. "She never needed my forgiveness," Hotaru said. There was a sort of distant, wistful note in her manner. Minako had the feeling she wasn't thinking only of recent events. The smile that Mamoru exchanged with Rei said better than any words that they were in agreement. "If it's okay with everyone, I'd like to call her," Ami said. She suddenly looked awkward. "Uh ... Takada said he'd like to meet with us tomorrow and talk about how we'll try and find the rogues. I think Setsuna and the others should be there too. I mean-" "You don't need to explain," Makoto interrupted. She was smiling warmly. "You should talk to her, she'd really love to hear from you." Ami smiled. "Okay. Mamoru, could I use your phone?" "You can use the one in the bedroom if you like," he suggested. "We'll let you arrange things," Minako said, smiling encouragingly. The parting with the Outer Senshi had been hardest on Ami, she really liked Setsuna. This would be something of a personal reunion for them, they deserved some privacy. "Perhaps I'll be going," Daniel said to Mamoru. "Churchland-san?" They all turned to Hotaru. She had been very quiet up until now. "Do you remember much about Princess Serenity?" she asked. "Yes, I remember her very well," Daniel said. "She brightened up the court like a beam of silvery moonlight. I cherished every moment spent in her presence, as did everybody." "Could you tell us about her?" She asked. "I'd be happy to do that sometime," Daniel said, somehow making his meaning clear. "Daniel," Mamoru said. "You don't need to worry. Not thinking about her isn't an option for any of us, any more than not breathing is. I'd love to hear about her life in the Moon Kingdom. We all would." "That's right," Rei said. "If she was half the character then that she is now, I'll bet you've got some very interesting stories to tell." "Well, I might have one or two." After Ami came back from making her phone call, they found out that he had more than one or two stories. It would have gone on all night had it not been such an exhausting day for everybody. ***** Shoji had been getting worried for a while. After teleporting the Seed Crystal, Yui had collapsed. When he finally got her to wake up, she had been barely coherent enough to tell him about the excruciating pain in her head. He had carried her to their bed, and for hours had been alternately applying damp cloths to her forehead and giving her face and neck massages. Now, finally she was starting to respond. The tension was going out of her, and she would answer with more than a barely detectable sending when he asked her how she was feeling. He even got her to sit up and take something to drink. When her eyes started to focus on things again and she no longer had a vacant look on her face, he finally gave her a kiss. **Well done, Yui-chan. You did it.** She smiled. **It was just like you said it would be. I touched the crystal and there was this rush of power. I felt like the first time I took a temple's life force, only way better. I felt like I could 'port it to the moon.** **Yui, I've warned you about thinking things like that.** **I got it here, didn't I?** **Yeah, you sure did.** Yesterday he had finally confessed to her his dark secret: as a child, he had once sneaked into the crystal room and had done the unthinkable. He had touched the Seed Crystal. They had always been told that anyone who did that would go up in flame. He had felt a burning fire, but one that nurtured him rather than consumed him. He felt certain that Yui would feel the same thing, that it would give her the strength to teleport the massive artifact all the way here. He had been right. But being a channel for that kind of power had almost been too much for her. He had really been scared, it had been all he could do not to go into hysterics. But now everything was fine, all the pieces were in place. **I don't remember anything before you brought me here,** Yui said. **Did I get it to the right place?** **More or less. You want to go see?** **Sure.** They walked into the attached garage and Yui's eyes went wide. **Wow, it almost goes up to the ceiling!** **Yeah, it's a good thing there's a steepled roof.** The spires of the crystal were thrusting up between the roof trusses, the tallest spires almost reaching the roof. Nobody had thought the crystal below the ground was that big. It might have been a near thing, often when there were obstructions like that it would throw a teleport way off. It practically filled the big double garage, though there was more than enough room to walk around it. Yui walked up to it. **This is cool. We're probably the first ones to see the whole thing.** **Well, the first ones in a very long time, that's for sure.** **Where are Akechi and 'Tomi?** **They're with our sleeping beauty.** **You want to do her now, Senpai?** **Do you feel up to it?** **Sure. Now that my headache's gone, I feel pumped again. Besides, my part's easy.** **Okay, let's go.** They went up to Hitomi's room. She and Akechi were sitting together on the floor, leaning against the foot of her bed and watching her little television. CNN, naturally. Things were looking a little better on the plague front today, which was kind of an odd thing to say with half a billion outsiders lying dead and stinking in the streets. It could still get out of control again and who's to say there wasn't somebody with another one of those bugs ready to go. Well, that was what this little operation was all about. **Hey Yui-chan,** Hitomi said, standing up. **How you feeling?** **Good. I saw the crystal, it's way cool!** **You did a good job parking it between the rafters. I don't know what we'd have done if it had ended up in the front yard.** **Or the neighbour's yard,** Akechi said. **That would have been pretty tough to explain.** **How's our princess?** Shoji asked. **I scanned her just a few minutes ago,** Akechi said. **Still out like a light.** Shoji looked over at the woman lying peacefully on the bed. Akechi had stunned her about one second after Yui teleported her over here, she probably had no idea what hit her. So this was the legendary Sailor Moon. It occurred to him that he didn't even know her real name, she must have one. She didn't strike him as much. It was hard to believe this was the one who had turned all of Hitomi's berserker animals with one shot. She looked so serene, he couldn't imagine her hurting a fly. But Lord, what a dish. He gasped as Yui grabbed his crotch. **You're thinking naughty thoughts again, Senpai.** He batted her head playfully. **Yui, not in front of the kids.** They all laughed. **Anyway, all my naughty thoughts are about you.** **That's better.** **Akechi's been ogling her too,** Hitomi said. **Can't blame either of you, she almost makes me want to change my lifestyle.** **Seen better,** Akechi said. **Hair's too dark, for one thing.** **It's blonde!** Hitomi said. **About the only one with lighter hair is me.** **Yeah, I know.** They smiled at each other. So, he was giving her indirect compliments now. Oh well, slow progress was better than no progress. **Yui wants to do her now,** Shoji said. **Hitomi, you remember all the stuff we talked about?** **Sure. Ready when you are.** Yui walked over to the side of the bed. She raised her hands over the comatose woman. After a moment, a kaleidoscope of light motes floated up from her body and gathered between Yui's hands. They all just stared in silence. **Wow,** Yui eventually said. It was the most gorgeous thing Shoji had ever seen. No life force from a holy site could even compare to it. Rather than dancing about at random, the motes of light swirled about in fractal patterns that formed and dissolved and reformed. Shoji felt as if he wasn't looking at an object, but rather a gateway, a hole leading into some realm of pure energy that just went on forever and ever. He blinked, shook his head. **Whoa. I think we've got the real thing here.** Yui brought it around so that he and Hitomi could get a better look. He could feel its presence, it was almost as intense as the crystal itself. He raised his hands to it as if basking in the warm glow of a bonfire. **Man, I don't think a soul can get more ancient than that.** **You going to try reading it?** Akechi asked. **Give me a second,** Shoji said. He leaned closer. It was hard, the psychic equivalent of trying to interpret a double exposure negative. **It's like there's two sets of memories. One of them is really weird. Like she's on the moon or something. She's been in big battles with some sort of monsters. Real Wrath of God stuff.** **She knows about the crystal palace,** Hitomi said. **She's seen it.** **Seen it?** Akechi asked. **You mean in a vision or something?** **I'd almost swear she's seen it right before her eyes,** Hitomi said. **Yeah,** Shoji said. **That's it alright. But this is all really hard to sort out. Almost like a really bad schizophrenic Yui and I did once. She's Sailor Moon and this girl and a Princess and a Queen, except somehow she understands it all, they're all really her.** He backed away. **Whoa, this is giving me a headache.** Hitomi backed away as well. **I think she's the one.** **She's definitely the one,** Yui said. **Her soul looks exactly like the Seed Crystal told me it would look.** **You figure she'll respond to your touch?** Shoji asked Hitomi. **Yeah. She's still an animal, after all, she's got no defense. It'll be even easier than doing those black sheep.** **Okay, do your stuff.** Hitomi stepped up to the dazzling life force that Yui held up to her, and bent down over it. She spoke aloud, but Shoji could also hear her voice resonating in his head, coming off the naked life force like an echo. "Listen very closely. My name is Hitomi. I'm your friend. There are some very important things I need to tell you ..." End Chapter 13 --------------76803251269D-- From - Sun Jan 11 12:22:46 1998 Return-Path: Received: from smtp28.bellglobal.com (smtp28.bellglobal.com [204.101.251.58]) by pop50.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA26327 for ; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:48:09 -0500 (EST) Received: from access.mbnet.mb.ca (root@access.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.11]) by smtp28.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA16105 for ; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:48:07 -0500 (EST) Received: from ts7m-4.mbnet.mb.ca (ts7m-4.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.119]) by access.mbnet.mb.ca (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id NAA11297; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 13:46:09 -0600 (CST) Message-ID: <34B7FA76.5AC4@mbnet.mb.ca> Date: Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:47:18 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Win16; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 14] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------701171312770" X-UIDL: f2a2ccea4ab9dead50d10d51a5a75887 X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: -30373 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------701171312770 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com --------------701171312770 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; name="SECRET14.TXT" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SECRET14.TXT" Secrets Chapter 14 - Apocalypse Hotaru got a ride to the headquarters of the Order from Mamoru and Rei. She had spent the night at Makoto's apartment, so Mamoru picked them both up there. It was Makoto's first night after coming out of her coma, and everyone had felt better with Hotaru being there with her. She had tiptoed into Makoto's room more than once during the night to gently probe her with the hands that saw beneath the skin, saw what was invisible even to the scrutiny of doctors. Makoto had slept a healthy, restful sleep, and come morning had woken up quickly and easily. She even ate a fair amount of the wonderful breakfast she had made for the two of them. Hotaru soon found that she had become very popular among the Order. She and Jeneth had saved more than one of the agents who had been injured in the Animal Kingdom. Everyone seemed to want to thank her personally. Eventually, Takada led them to a room that looked more like a banquet hall than a meeting space. The morning light came through enormous paneled windows all along one wall, making the three great chandeliers over the long table sparkle. Ami, Minako and the two cats were already there. Smith and Saori soon joined them. Hotaru and Ami took the opportunity to have a look at Smith's arm. Jeneth had come by the previous day, she had been able to speed up the healing to the point where he had free use of it with only mild pain. She had left little for Hotaru to do. The three refugees soon showed up. Makoto got hugs from all of them. Jeneth in particular was teary-eyed, overjoyed to see the Avatar who she had probably given up for dead. Hotaru was glad to see her in such good spirits. Ami had described her reaction to the news of Usagi's kidnapping, she had been devastated. They were all wearing their glamours, even though everyone here knew who they were. Probably to make everybody more comfortable. She didn't say anything but Hotaru thought they really needn't bother, she found their true forms strikingly beautiful. Then the great double doors opened again, and Noriko ushered in the last of their invited guests. Hotaru got up from her seat and walked over to them. "My sisters ..." "Hi, Hotaru," Haruka said. They all gathered around her. Haruka and Michiru each laid a hand on her shoulders, and Setsuna took her hands. Hotaru forced herself to look up into Setsuna's eyes. "I don't know what to say. You must be very disappointed with me." "Oh my dear one," Setsuna said. "How could you even think that? You've fought more bravely for the Princess than any of us. We couldn't be more proud." "It wasn't your fault," Michiru said. "It wasn't anybody's fault but the monsters who deceived you." "Come on," Haruka said in a loud, clear voice. "I want to see the girl you've been nursing back to health." Makoto stood up in response. Haruka was the quickest, walking briskly over to her and embracing her tightly. "Welcome back to the land of the living, Mako-chan." "Thanks, Haruka." She looked genuinely pleased to see the three Senshi. Hotaru was glad to see there were no bad feelings. Haruka held her at arms' length. "It sure took you long enough. We'll have to really work at getting you back in shape." Makoto flashed a feral grin. "I can hardly wait." "Boy, that didn't take long," Minako muttered. Michiru's embrace was a little more restrained. She pulled a pocket book out of her handbag. "This is what I've been reading to you. I don't know how much you remember, if you're still interested you might have to start from the beginning again." Makoto took it. "Musashi? You know, I just vaguely remember some sort of Samurai drama. I guess I will have to start at the beginning. Thanks." Setsuna held her the longest. "Mako-chan, I would never have forgiven myself if we had lost you." "Water under the bridge," Makoto said. "Let's just focus on getting Usagi back." "Of course." Setsuna turned to face Takada, who was standing beside his chair at the end of the table, waiting patiently. "I'm sorry for the delay." "Not at all. We're all very glad to see Jupiter back on her feet." "I'd like to introduce you to a very old friend of mine." She indicated the man Noriko had led into the room with the three Senshi, the man who had also been standing slightly aside, waiting quietly. "This is Daniel Churchland." "I'm glad to finally meet you," Takada said. Setsuna raised an eyebrow. "Did one of the others mention something about Daniel?" "Perhaps I can best explain," Daniel said. "Many years ago, a member of the Order tracked me down and confronted me with a fifty year old photograph of myself looking just as I do now, challenging me to explain it." He smiled. "I suspect he thought me to be a vampire. It's a long story, but suffice to say I was able to convince him I am no threat to public peace. Since then I have been rather more careful about having my picture taken." "And careful about many other things," Takada said. "We were never able to locate you again, after that one time." "I tend to keep a low profile." "Indeed." At Takada's invitation, everyone sat down. He continued, addressing the whole group. "We all know about what happened yesterday. The rogue Ancients committed an act of treachery that led to a tragic confrontation between their brethren and a group of the Sailor Senshi. What most of you don't know is that upon hearing of these events we made some attempts to contact the Ancients. I called my own contact, Kaori's sister, but she has not returned my messages. Yesterday Saori led a group of police and emergency workers to Kaori's house, basis directions we received from Ami. The gate had been barricaded. When they attempted to get through, men and women appeared and ordered them to leave. They must have been Ancients, since one of them used their powers to send what might be termed a warning shot, a plasma bolt of some sort, over the heads of the police. Saori ordered them to withdraw. Evidently, the Ancients are not interested in talking to anybody." "Saori, were the men you saw dressed as peasants?" Ami asked. "Yes, in fact that's exactly how I'd describe them." "It looked like they were arriving from some other place," Ami said. "They were," Setsuna said. "They must be from the Matriarch's household. Either they are barring entry to Kaori's house or supervising an evacuation." "You can hardly blame them," Minako said. "After what we did." Her voice was thick with remorse. "We walked right into one of their traps too," Smith said. "And we took you all along with us, nearly got everybody killed. It's we who should feel badly." Minako smiled. "You're being very diplomatic." "Just practical. The plain fact is, at least one of these rogues is crazy like a fox. Clever, but unpredictable. We'd best not underestimate them again." "That's something we should talk about," Takada said. "Just who are these rogues, and what are their capabilities?" "I can pass on what Kaori told me," Setsuna said. "It will mostly just conform what we know from the fights we've been in. Her son Shoji is almost certainly the one driving their actions. He can shoot flame and put up fire barriers, as we saw at Hikawa shrine. His mate, the deaf-mute girl, is probably the most powerful of them. She can teleport, levitate, put up powerful barriers and use psychokinesis. In addition she has the ability to take the soul from any living thing. She may have other powers not even Kaori knows about." "She can cause extreme pain from a distance," Rei said calmly. "There are two others with them," Setsuna continued. "The man can make himself effectively invisible, and has a powerful disruptive psionic attack. The woman has the power of suggestion over man or beast, she is the one responsible for putting all those animals into a berserker state." Hotaru suddenly felt overcome with dread. "Setsuna, if she used that power on a person, would they ...?" "No," Setsuna said. "That was something quite different. Kaori describes her other power as a kind of psionically enhanced hypnosis. She suspects the woman has been using it to coax money from bank tellers and such, to finance their leisurely lifestyle." "That is likely how they plan to compel Usagi-san to do their bidding," Takada said. "The poor girl," Jeneth said. "She won't have any defense against that sort of power, even if she could transform into Sailor Moon. She'll be helpless." "Jeneth," Mamoru said. "You may be right, she might fall under their spell. But don't ever make the mistake of thinking that Usagi is helpless." "That's right," Rei said. "I think these rogues are going to find out they've bitten off more than they can chew." "I don't doubt for a moment that your Princess is very resourceful," Takada said. "Nevertheless, I think we have to assume that the rogues will be able to compel her to activate the Seed Crystal. They obviously believe she can transform it into the crystal palace they seek. The question is, can she do it?" "If anybody can, it would be her," Setsuna said. "The Seed Crystal probably dates from the time of the Silver Millennium, chances are it was made in the Moon Kingdom. If that is the case, it may actually be made to respond only to one of the royal family. That's just speculation. I'm sorry, I wish I knew more." "I can make a good guess what it is," Daniel said. "A very long time ago, sorcerers both on the Earth and in the Moon Kingdom were experimenting with what I might describe as charmed crystals. When activated, they would gather matter and energy from their surroundings and shape them into some desired form. If this Seed Crystal can truly become the crystal palace, it is most likely that sort of artifact." "Daniel," Ami said, "If Usagi were to activate the Seed Crystal, do you think we could detect it somehow?" "Easily, I should think," Daniel said. "Locally, there would be very spectacular side effects, a great deal of light and noise. Unless they are in a very isolated area, it would certainly be noticed." "Just how far could they be?" Thetan asked. "Could they be on the other side of the world?" "I think that's unlikely," Saori said. "Their actions are driven by a desire for sanctuary, protection. They'll stick close to home. They're almost certainly still in the country. On the other hand, they'd want to avoid their estranged family's strongholds in the north. That really doesn't leave them much choice of isolated areas." "Then chances are, if and when this process starts we'll know about it very soon," Takada said. "We might not need to wait for reports of a sighting," Daniel said. "The activated crystal would show up very strongly on an astral detector like the one we passed on the way in." Takada frowned. He looked at Noriko. "Has the detector display been activated?" "No sir." "I detected the spell used to keep it invisible," Daniel explained. "I've used similar spells myself." "I see." Takada sounded just a little bit annoyed. "We have crystals resonating with that detector spread all over the country, and we always have a 24-hour watch on them. If something shows up, we'll know about it right away." "Daniel, how long do you think it would take for this palace to form?" Ami asked. "I couldn't see it being less than a few days. Possibly a lot longer." "Our clever little fox won't have any way to know that," Smith said. "He might not even think to ask," Saori said. "He probably regards the Seed Crystal as being a holy artifact, in his mind it's his key to the kingdom of heaven. He'll expect it to all happen in an instant." "Then that's our advantage," Takada said. "Whatever powers this palace will really afford him will probably not manifest themselves for some time after the process starts, at least not fully. If we can find them quickly, they will still be vulnerable." "We'll have to deal with them quickly," Setsuna said. "We have to assume the Ancients will also have ways of detecting the activated Seed Crystal. We'll want to be done before they arrive." "That's right." Takada looked around the table. "To be blunt, we can't afford to be squeamish in how we deal with these rogues. If we're to get their prisoner to safety, we'll have to put them down quickly." Makoto cracked her knuckles. "That's fine with me." "They might have the Princess in some kind of a stronghold," K'Theelm said. "It could very well be defended by beasts such as they already sent against us." "We've thought of that," Smith said. "After the incident at the Animal Kingdom, I asked for backup from the head office in New York. Most of the additional forces have been airlifted from America and are ready to roll at a moment's notice." "Are they equipped with guns like the ones we saw you use?" Haruka asked. Smith grinned. "Those were just sidearms. The boys from head office have brought their new toys with them. Something with a lot more punch. And we've also secured help from the other branches, spiritualists who can counter the Ancients' powers. We'll have some surprises for them, that's for sure." "I'm hoping we can teleport right there, as soon as we've found where they are," Minako said. "We may take care of them before you've even gotten there." "I share the same hope," Takada said. "Nevertheless, the additional forces will be required to secure the palace." "What do you mean, secure the palace?" Rei asked. She was looking suspiciously at Takada. "If Usagi-san really succeeds in creating it, then we must regard it as a dangerous artifact," Takada said. "For better or worse, the Ancients now regard both you and us as enemies. They probably regard all outsiders as enemies. We can't afford to let it fall into their hands." "There is an easy way to do that," Daniel said. "Destroy it." People showed their surprise in various ways. Takada just raised his eyebrows slightly. "If it is in danger of falling into hostile hands, that is a definite option. Otherwise, as far as I'm concerned the one who brings it into being is the only one qualified to decide its fate. If your speculation about the Seed Crystal's origin is correct, then technically it belongs to the Princess. She has behaved with nothing but the utmost integrity, I am content to trust her judgement in that matter." "Are you acknowledging Usagi's mastery over the palace?" Rei asked. Takada just smiled. "I have a sneaking suspicion that should the palace really come into being, she will have mastery over it regardless of what anybody thinks. But yes, as far as I am concerned I am protecting the palace on her behalf." He looked at Minako. "Venus, I understand that you speak for her in her absence." She nodded. "That's right." "Have you any objection to the plans we've outlined so far?" "No. I just want to get Usagi back. I don't give a damn about the palace, once we've gotten her out of there you can nuke it for all I care." "That would only be a last resort." It was said in a matter of fact way, there was nothing to indicate that he was kidding. "Then I'll just request one thing," Minako said. "We're really grateful for your help, but protecting the Princess is the responsibility of the Sailor Senshi. When we find the people who are holding her, we should be the ones to spear the attack." "That's 'spearhead the attack'," Ami corrected her. Minako pointed to Ami. "What she said." Takada nodded. "Then we'll plan accordingly. I should give everyone an outline of the forces we have on standby." "Takada-san," Luna said, getting everybody's attention. She sat up on her forelegs, bringing her a little higher. "Before we get into details, is there anything you can tell us about the state of the pandemic?" Takada regarded her for just a moment before he spoke. He had just met Luna and Artemis today. Minako had warned them that she would be bringing a pair of talking cats with her. Hotaru had to wonder whether he had believed her. He still looked a bit awkward at having to address what looked for all the world like a pair of ordinary house cats. "I believe Noriko has reviewed the morning reports." "There were a few updates on some of the rumours of outbreaks outside the quarantine zone," Noriko said. "So far they have all proved to be false alarms. We also got a report from the Nepal headquarters. In their area, it looks like the deaths have stopped as quickly as they began. All indications are that whoever stole and modified the Rising Wind virus was successful in giving it a limited lifetime. It's too soon to say anything definite. The ones responsible are almost certainly trapped in the quarantine zone, it will be a long time before anybody could even consider trying to hunt them down." "Spirits, what could they have been thinking, unleashing such a thing?" Thetan said. "They were thinking that they were in control," Daniel said. "It's an easy trap to fall into, when one receives power as an unearned gift." He and Setsuna exchanged a quick glance. Hotaru could practically feel Setsuna putting up her inscrutable poker face. She got the impression she was missing something. "At any rate, that situation is in other hands," Takada said. "We should focus on our own battle plan. But before we get into details, let's get some coffee brought in." ***** Usagi woke up in a strange bed. She felt groggy, like she had been sleeping far too long. And she had no idea how she had gotten here. It was almost enough to let her ignore how hungry she was. She sat up and took a look around the bedroom. She gasped, as she suddenly realized she was not alone. The white-haired girl sitting in the armchair smiled. "Hi. I'm Hitomi." Usagi suddenly relaxed. She wasn't sure why. It was like she ought to know that name. "I'm Usagi," she said. "Where am I?" "You're in our house. We brought you here." She shook her head. "Why don't I remember?" "We teleported you," she said. "You blacked out, you've been asleep since yesterday. Are you feeling okay?" "I guess so. It ... um, it just feels like I've been here a really long time." "Oh, right. Bathroom's down the hall, I'll take you." While she was washing up, Usagi tried to figure out what was churning around at the back of her mind. Of course it was very strange, she had no idea what was going on. But Hitomi seemed to be a really nice person, she would explain everything. She was waiting for Usagi in the hallway. "Usagi, I'd like you to come meet a good friend of mine. He'll explain everything to you." "Okay." Hitomi led her downstairs and into a spacious living/dining room. The man who had been sitting there got up as they entered. "Usagi, I'd like you to meet Shoji," Hitomi said. "Hi Usagi. I'm sorry about you blacking out like that, do you feel okay now?" "Yes, I feel fine." "I'll bet you're hungry. We're about to have lunch, why don't you join us?" "Sure." Lunch was already on the table. It smelled wonderful. After they had all served themselves and started eating, Shoji started to talk in earnest. "Usagi, I want to be honest with you. Hitomi and I, we're part of the family called the Ancients." Usagi frowned. "Are you the ones who got into a fight with Rei?" "Yes. We're really sorry about that, we didn't want it to happen. You see, we tried to explain it to her, but she just doesn't understand. None of them understand." "Understand what?" "Understand what we're trying to do. We're trying to build a beautiful palace for us all to live in." A vision came into Usagi's head. "You mean the Crystal Palace." Shoji smiled. "Yes. I can see that you understand. You've seen it too, haven't you?" "Yes, I've been to the Palace. I mean, in the future. I saw it in the future." Shoji seemed just a bit surprised to hear that. "Really? That's very interesting, Usagi. So you must know what a wonderful place it is." "Oh yes. It's beautiful." "Well, we've seen it too. In a vision. Ever since we saw that vision we've wanted nothing more than to see it for real. We've been trying to find a way to make it a reality. That's why we were taking the life force from all those shrines. To try and bring the Seed Crystal to life." "But why didn't you just tell us that?" Usagi asked. "Because they wouldn't understand. Only you see the Palace the way we do, so only you can understand how important it is." Usagi thought about that. Of course, what could be more important than the Palace? It was where Chibi-usa would be born, it was where Usagi would be with her and Mamoru and all her friends for the next thousand years. "But ... why did you do that thing to Naru-chan, and all those other people?" "We were looking for you," Shoji said. "We were looking for the one with a pure heart, the one that the Seed Crystal would accept as its master, the one who could bring the Crystal Palace to life. Now we've finally found you. Won't you help us?" She couldn't understand why he was even asking the question. "Of course I'll help you. But I should call my friends first, they'll be worried about me." "That's not a good idea," Shoji said. "They would only try and destroy the Seed Crystal." Usagi gasped. "What?" "Usagi, it's not their fault," Shoji said sternly. "They just don't understand. They're afraid of the Palace, they think it's an evil thing." Usagi shook her head. "How could they think such a thing?" "They're just afraid of what they don't understand." He smiled. "But you can make them understand. Just give us the Palace. Once they see it with their own eyes, they will understand too." Usagi really wanted to call her friends, to let them know that she's okay. But Shoji was right, they wouldn't understand that the Palace was the most important thing. They would want to punish the Ancients. But she couldn't let them do that. "Okay, I'll try to help. When can we go to the Seed Crystal?" "We can go right now if you like." "You mean it's here?" Shoji grinned. "Would you like to see it?" "Yes!" She wolfed down the last of her lunch. Her two guests seemed rather surprised by how fast she could eat. But she was really hungry, and was very, very anxious to see the Seed Crystal. When she was done, Shoji led her through a door into the attached garage. She stood there, struck dumb. "It's ... beautiful," she eventually said. She basked in its radiance. Even if she were blindfolded, she would surely know it for what it was. Being here beside it gave her the same warm, contented feeling that being in the Crystal Palace had given her. They were one and the same, there could be no doubt. She hadn't even noticed the other two people in the garage. "Oh. Hello." "This is my friend Akechi," Shoji said. "And this is my girlfriend Yui. She's a little shy, she can't hear so she only talks by telepathy." Usagi just smiled and waved at the girl, who did likewise. Poor girl, it must be hard for her. Maybe Jeneth could do something for her. Or maybe she could do something herself. Just being here with the Seed Crystal, she felt power coursing through her body. Once she had brought the Palace into being, she could do just about anything. She turned to Shoji. "Can I try it now?" He grinned. "Go for it." Usagi barely had to think about becoming Sailor Moon, and it had already happened. Her four friends all seemed a bit startled. She smiled at them, tried to show them there was nothing to be afraid of. She would make their dream come true for them. She cupped her hands before her, and the Ginzuishou appeared before her. The silvery little crystal was glowing brightly, and suddenly the enormous Seed Crystal was glowing just as brightly. The Ancients all shielded their eyes. It must be too bright for them, she thought. She wished they could see it the way she did. Suddenly the Crystal hardly seemed to be a substantial object at all, but just a space occupied by pure light. Now Usagi knew exactly what she had to do, it was obvious. She walked straight into the middle of the Seed Crystal. It did not resist her passage any more than the air itself did. She could feel the Ginzuishou resonating with it, the little round crystal between her hands shone like a tiny sun. She fed more of her own power into it. The more she did, the more the crystal glowed and the more the Seed Crystal glowed. Ami had some fancy phrase for this sort of thing. Oh yes, a positive feedback loop. She could feel the sympathetic vibrations between the two crystals building to a climax. The power surged, seemed almost to be a living thing, eager to be unleashed from the confines of the Seed Crystal, eager to grow into its true form. In the midst of the unbearable light, a ghostly image tried to form. It was Queen Serenity. Her mother. Usagi wanted to shout for joy. But her smile faded almost before it even formed. Something was wrong. Serenity looked terrified, frantic. She reached for Usagi and cried out. "Do not!" Usagi blinked. Do not? No, that couldn't be right. It was like Shoji had said, they just didn't understand. Once she was in the Palace, everything would work out. She would be able to do anything. She could even bring Queen Serenity back to life, could finally be reunited with her. She smiled. "Don't worry, mother. Everything will be fine." Everything around her dissolved, and Usagi was enveloped in an explosion of purest white. ***** Aiko had not been in an automobile since she was a little girl. Her gift had been discovered early, and the Matriarch had offered to become her godmother. She had always suspected that it had been rather more than an offer. Her parents made only obligatory visits, and they were still uncomfortable in their daughter's presence. That was Aiko's only regret. But she knew it had been for the better. The blind had a very rough time of it in outsider society. And of course they would never be able to understand her gift, she could never be allowed to explain it. In the Matriarch's household, everybody accepted her as she was, even revered her for what she was. Her visions had allowed members of the family to avoid many calamities great and small. And from a practical standpoint, it made sense for Aiko to live in grandma Himiko's house. Half the objects in the house were magical artifacts of one sort or another, they showed up in her aura vision as clearly as people did. Living there, she could almost forget her lack of sight. But now she was being driven through the countryside by a distant relative she had never met before. His name was Shin, all she knew about him was that he was a farmer and grandma Himiko regarded him as trustworthy. They were driving through Chiba district. Or so she had been told. She tried to concentrate on what grandma Himiko had tasked her to do. But it was difficult to concentrate, being jostled around in this noisy metal beast. She was startled by the sound of gears grating. She had asked him about the noise, he had explained that the car had a manual something ... a manual transmission. She braced herself. She had quickly learned that noise to be the precursor for a turn that would drive her one way or the other, or a stop that would drive her forward. It turned out to be the former. "Do you want to stop and rest, Aiko-san?" he asked nervously. "No, thank you. I'm fine." She knew he was already driving quite slowly for her benefit, but to her it still felt like they were plunging headlong. She wondered how somebody could actually control an automobile going at this speed. But the Matriarch was in a hurry. That was why she had practically every sensitive in the family wandering the countryside, anyone who could detect the presence of their own. They were looking for the rogues, the ones whose trickery had led them into a war with the Sailor Senshi. Aiko could scarcely believe the things she had heard, of fire breathing succubi dressed as flashy whores, descending on poor Kaori-mama's house, slaughtering everything in their path. But she had seen their other crime with her own inner eye, the Seed Crystal brutally violated, taken. The rogues had brought this upon the family, so they would be offered as a sacrifice to the demon whores, to appease their wrath. They had to be found as soon as possible. Aiko suddenly gasped, and her sightless eyes flew open of their own accord. "Aiko-san, what's wrong?" "Could ... could you please stop the car?" The gears grated, the car slowed. She heard gravel under the tires as they came to a stop, understood that he had pulled off the smoothly paved part of the road. Even in the country, only the sides of the road were the gravel she had remembered hearing under the tires during her childhood trips. "Did you sense something?" "I wasn't sure, but suddenly it was like an explosion of power. To our right, slightly behind. Something is happening there." She heard a squeaking, what she assumed was Shin rolling down his window. With the window open and the motor just idling, she could hear it more clearly now. A sound like distant thunder, only more like a constant rumble. Shin gasped. "By the First Ancestor!" "Do you see something?" she asked anxiously. "It looks like it's kilometres away, but it's bright even under the noonday sun. It's like a beam of light shooting straight up into the sky." Aiko began to shake uncontrollably. "Shin-san ... I'm afraid. It feels like Seed Crystal, but it's all wrong. Something terrible is happening." "I have to report this." Aiko heard him fumbling with something. He must be using the portable telephone he had told her about, though he had called it something else. A cellular phone. Neither of them could do long distance telepathy, so that was how he would contact the household in Yokohama where the Matriarch was staying. "Hello, this is Shin calling from my car. We're in Chiba. We've found the rogues ... No, Aiko detected the Seed Crystal, something is happening to it. Yes, of course." There was a pause. They must be putting somebody else on the telephone. "Matriarch ... yes, it must be them. Aiko thinks something is being done with the Seed Crystal ... yes, I'm just about five kilometres west of my farm. It's hard to tell, but the Seed Crystal is probably three or four kilometres south of me, maybe more ... Well, it's just a column of very bright silvery light, almost like a lightning bolt but going straight up into ..." Aiko could tell from his voice that he was leaning out the window for a better look. "Matriarch, there's something new. At the top of this beam of light there's a black cloud ... no, more like just a circle of darkness. It's getting bigger. It's far up in the sky, it must be enormous. All along the edge of the circle there's some sort of blue lightning. By all the ancestors, it's like a hole opening up in the sky! The shadow of it's just passed over us, it's blotted out the sun. It's still going out in all directions. Gods, you can probably see it from Yokohama by now. What should I-" "Shin-san." "Your pardon, Matriarch, Aiko is calling me." His voice became more gentle. "Aiko-san, what's wrong? You look pale." "I'm blind. I can't see you anymore." "Aiko ...?" "My aura vision, it's gone." She barely heard Shin passing on this awful news to grandma Himiko. For the first time in her life, she was truly blind. It was exactly as Shin had described it, like a shadow passing over them, plunging them into utter darkness. She whimpered in fear, started sobbing uncontrollably. ***** Kaori looked at the remains of her house, now cold and empty. The dream is over, she thought. Now we are at war with the outsiders. I could not have failed more utterly. One of the Matriarch's haughty guardsman strode up to her, bearing himself as if his simple peasant garb were a uniform, a badge of office. "We have teleported the last of the valuables to the other households," he announced. "You have done no such thing," Kaori said to him, not at all intimidated by the Matriarch's strutting thugs. "You have removed what *you* consider most valuable." "There is no time to do more," the man declared. "The Matriarch wants the house abandoned today. The people guarding it are needed to help hunt down the rogues." "We don't need any guards," Kaori said, even though she knew it would do no good. "The Sailor Senshi have no reason to attack us again." "It is by-" "-the order of the Matriarch," she completed for him. He just glared at her. She sighed. "Will you not at least reconsider the awful thing you plan on doing? Burning down the house is beyond all reason." "No Ancient will ever be able to live here again," the man said. She needed no telepathy to guess that he wanted to add *thanks to your folly.* "We have no reason to leave anything in the hands of the outsiders. And we cannot risk leaving anything behind that will reveal things about us we would rather them not knowing." "Of course," she said bitterly. "We wouldn't want them knowing anything about us, would we? That way they will fear us as they fear all the creatures of the night. That way they'll leave us alone and we'll all be safe, isn't that right?" She might as well have been railing against a statue. "There is no need for you to dally here any longer," he said. "You're right. This shameful act of cowardice deserves no witness." She turned on her heel and walked back towards the house. Her words of defiance were worthless. Her voice was no longer heard. As far as everybody was concerned, it was her consorting with outsiders that brought about this disaster. She had embraced the Matriarch's engagement of the outsiders' world, but had pursued a different vision. Himiko had seen them as forming a secret society always hovering in the shadows, standing aloof, walking among the outsiders but always guarding their secrets well. Kaori had never thought that could work, had always thought that someday they must come into the open, reveal themselves for what they truly were. Though she had rarely discussed it openly, she had been laying the groundwork for that day, assuming that someday it must come. She still thought that one day it must come. But now, she doubted it would come in her lifetime. She walked slowly through the rock garden at the back of the house. It was still intact, would probably be the only thing more or less intact when they were done with it. Or maybe these ignorant peasants would uproot it as well, another meaningless act of spite against a world they feared and hated. She gazed at the flagstones, they reminded her that she still hadn't decided where she wanted to go. She couldn't bear the thought of one of the larger households, where she would face the scorn of all those who fixed the blame for her son's folly on her shoulders. Her sister had told her she was welcome to stay at her little house in Hokkaido. Perhaps that would be best. Kaori felt a building anxiety. She thought it was because this was the last time she would be seeing the home she had spent most of her life building and nurturing. The Matriarch teleported onto the flagstone, flanked by two of her guardsmen. Kaori gasped. "Matriarch. Why have you come here?" She sniffed. "Have you no eyes, woman?" She pointed behind Kaori's back. "We are moving away from *that*. You can already see it from here." Kaori turned around. There was a dark cloud on the horizon, but it was all wrong. It was like a circle of darkness extending out over the land, its circumference rimmed with dazzling blue lightning. Was it her imagination that it was getting bigger? She was seeing it nearly edge on, but it still looked as if it were moving, growing. "Your son has done something to the Seed Crystal," Himiko continued. "Or that Princess the Sailor Senshi were looking for has done it for him. We can guess what is happening. They are making the Crystal Palace." "But ... what is that?" "It is our doom unless we act quickly," Himiko said. "Ancients who have fallen under its shadow have lost their powers." Kaori turned to face her. "Lost ...?" "With one exception," the Matriarch continued. "One actually approached the pillar of light at the centre of this hole in the sky. As he approached, his powers returned. He confirmed that just minutes ago. It's obvious what is happening. The Seed Crystal is draining the land of whatever it is that gives us our powers. Soon, the vicinity of the Palace may be the only place in the world where our powers are not lost to us. I have already sent the word out. We are taking the Palace. We are taking back our birthright. I will be heading there myself very soon, I have only come here to collect my guardsmen before they fall under this shadow." Kaori felt her world crumbling around her. She barely noticed the other guardsmen running or teleporting to their vicinity, rallying around the Matriarch. She felt telepathic signals being sent and answered. Her lieutenants were gathering the troops. "We will teleport directly there, that way we will not lose our powers," the Matriarch continued. "As well as dealing with the renegades, we will probably have to contend with curious outsiders." She gave Kaori a sideways look. "Anyone not up to a fight need not come right away. Once we've secured the palace it should be safe enough." Kaori still felt giddy, it was all happening too fast. "You mean to go into the middle of that?" "It's simple enough. Just imagine teleporting to the Seed Crystal, and we'll be right there. In your case, you'd probably better just drive there." She looked around her assembled guardsmen. "Has everyone else been notified?" "Yes, Matriarch," one of her bodyguards said. "The word is going out, everybody will know what they need to do." "Fine. Then we are ready to proceed." "Matriarch," Kaori said, "will you-" "His life is forfeit." Kaori said nothing. There was no point. "Matriarch, the darkness will be approaching Tokyo soon," one of the men said. "The people there will be preparing to depart soon." "I want to get there first," Himiko said. She glanced at the house. "Don't bother torching it. It probably doesn't make any difference now." Kaori shivered. Of course it didn't make any difference, it was the end of the world. There was a gentle pop, and everybody was suddenly on edge. A young man in jeans and a black leather jacket and purple dyed spiked hair stood a short distance away. "You bastard!" one of the men shouted. "How dare you show your face here!" He and a few others already had plasma balls and fireballs forming in their hands. **Hold!** The Matriarch's sending froze them all in their tracks. The man still stood casually, his hands in his pockets. "Matriarch, we need to talk." "And what would I have to say to a damned renegade?" Himiko asked. Kaori recognized the man now. He had gone renegade years ago. He was one of the most notorious of the black sheep. Rumour was he had killed more than one Ancient who had challenged his territory. "We know what's coming down," the black sheep said. "We've heard all about this palace. And we've heard what's happening to anyone falling under the shadow. We figure you've got a plan. We want in on it." The diminutive old woman stared him down. "And why should I even talk to the likes of you, renegade?" "Your freaky light show is going to bring the outsiders running. We know how to deal with them." It was several seconds before Himiko spoke. "Go back to where you came from and spread the word. That's the Seed Crystal at the centre of the shadow. All you have to do is teleport to it, and you won't lose your powers. I'll grant amnesty to any of the black sheep who submits to my authority. I'll kill any who don't. It's that simple." "Sounds good to me." "Are you acquainted with Akechi's older brother?" "Yeah. Calls himself The Reaper these days." Kaori shuddered. She had suspected for years that Akechi had some small part of his renegade brother's tendencies. But at worst Akechi's victims had ended up in therapy, trying to deal with the nightmares he had given them. His brother's victims had mostly ended up in morgues. The Matriarch had put him under a death sentence should he ever be found. "Have him seek me out once he reaches the palace," Himiko continued. "I'll have work for him. And you as well. You are now one of my commanders, the former black sheep will be under you. That is all, you may go." The man grinned. "I'll look forward to working for you, Matriarch." He vanished. One of her bodyguards looked down at her, his stoic expression doing little to hide his anxiety. "Matriarch, I don't think-" "We can't afford to be picky," she interrupted. "He's right, we'll need all the help we can get. We outnumber them and we work together better than they do. They won't try anything, most of them are probably scared out of their wits. We've delayed too long already. Follow my lead." Kaori could feel the power building up in them, as they concentrated, preparing for the group teleport. As one, the Matriarch and her guardsmen vanished. Kaori was left alone. She just stood and watched the darkness slowly swallowing up the sky. ***** The tour of the Order's headquarters, formerly Nephrite's home, stalled when they reached the astral detector in the vast central hall. Ami and K'Theelm and Daniel were asking Noriko all sorts of questions. When the technobabble got to be more and more esoteric, Makoto made a discrete exit, saying she wanted to go get something to drink. In fact, about all she wanted was a little peace and quiet, something that had been in short supply since she had woken from her long sleep. She walked into the little library with its great window opening onto the pine forest. She had thought to be alone here, but as she approached the little circle of high-back chairs, she saw that somebody was sitting in one of the ones faced away from her. When she came into view, Rei looked up from the book she had been reading. "Hi Mako-chan." "Hi Rei. Sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you." "I was just skimming. They've got some really interesting stuff here, but I just can't concentrate right now." "I know what you mean." "So how are you feeling?" Makoto gave her stock answer. "Okay, I guess." Rei smiled in sympathy. "Sorry, I guess you're tired of getting asked that." "No, it's not that. I'm not sure how I should be feeling, that's all. I mean, so much happened while I was out, and now so much has happened since I woke up. I'm still trying to get my head around it all." Rei closed her book and placed it on the little table beside her chair. "It must be hard to believe that you just woke up yesterday." "Yeah, it is." She sat down in the chair beside Rei's. "You know, it was only just this morning that it occurred to me none of my friends at the restaurant even know I've woken up yet. Ami would have been the one to tell them, and she hasn't had the chance. Neither have I. It's probably better they don't know for now. I mean, how can I explain that I'm cloistered in a cathedral, waiting for a signal from my missing Princess so that I can go rescue her? I sort of feel bad about it, though. Ami's been telling me how they've been trooping on without me. They're a really wonderful bunch." "Everybody seems to think this is going to be over pretty soon," Rei said. "Once this is all behind us, we can get back to our lives again." Makoto sighed. "Yeah. Maybe." Rei frowned. "Mako-chan, is there something else bothering you?" "Rei, what do you think will happen if Usagi can really make the Crystal Palace?" Rei looked liked she hadn't been expecting that question. "Well, we think that's not going to happen. Daniel thinks it would take days, and we'll get there a lot quicker than that. When we get Usagi back, we can get her to stop whatever it is that's turning the Seed Crystal into the Palace." "But what if she can't?" Rei thought about that for a moment. "I hadn't really been thinking that far ahead. If the palace as we saw it in the future really does come into being, I guess that would change everything for us." "Right. We'd have to come out in the open, explain everything to people." Rei smiled. It looked a bit strained. "Won't you like that? I thought you were always the one who hated the secrecy we live with." "Well, yeah. I knew that someday we could tell everybody who we are, and I liked the idea. But I'd always pictured that happening sometime way in the future. I didn't even connect it with the world we're living in now." "You thought you'd have a chance at a normal life first." Makoto sighed. "Yeah. I thought we'd all have that chance. I mean, it's just not fair! Everything was going so great for everybody. Then this comes along, and maybe it's going to change everything." Then she realized what she had said. "Oh God. Rei, I'm sorry. These monsters have already torn your life apart, and here I am feeling sorry for myself." Rei just smiled and shook her head, almost imperceptibly. "It's okay. You're right, it's not fair. After all the fighting we've done, we deserved a chance to live in peace. But as for a normal life ... well, I guess I've always resigned myself to the fact that it's not going to happen." "What do you mean?" "Mako-chan, as far as we know we're never going to grow old. At least not for a very, very long time. That by itself sets us apart from everybody else. You heard what Setsuna and Daniel were saying at lunch. They've had to change identities like we change clothes. Eventually we would have to do the same. In another ten, twenty years tops we'd have to either reveal who and what we are or move on and start again somewhere else." "I ... never thought of it that way." Rei sighed. "Mako-chan, I'm not trying to depress you. I still think we can all find happiness. We'll always have each other. And Yuichirou showed me that there will be people who will accept us for what we are. What more could we ask for?" "Rei-chan ... I wish more than anything I'd been there sooner." "We've been through that. Let it go." Makoto had already cried for Rei, held her and cried for her loss after she had explained what had happened at Hikawa shrine. Gods, had that been just yesterday? But she was right, they would all get their chance for happiness. "You know, the Order seems to be pretty well equipped. After we get Usagi back, why don't we all go on extended vacation and let them fight the forces of darkness for a few years?" "I don't know about that. They weren't even aware of a lot of the enemies we fought." "Yeah, we have a talent for stumbling into trouble. But if that happens, we could just sniff them out and let somebody else do the work. You know, sort of like bloodhounds." Rei chuckled. "Well, I guess from now on we can at least ask for their help." "Do they still want you to join up?" "When all this scrambling is done, they'll probably ask again. It might even be a good idea. Cement the relationship, as it were. They're a lot like us, they have to act in secret but still try to act with integrity. And they've been at it for a lot longer than we have." "Takada-san really seems to be taking things in stride. I mean, we've introduced him to talking cats and extraterrestrials and immortals and to him it's just another day on the job." "Yes, I think we're lucky to have him as an ally." "You know who he reminds me of?" Rei winced. "No no, please ..." Makoto laughed. "No, not him. He reminds me of Lafarge. I mean, as far as he was concerned we were just a bunch of little girls running around in microskirts, but he planned this big attack on Ingolffson's house with us like we were just another bunch of troops fighting with him." "You're right, they're both very open minded, very adaptable." "And they both make you feel like they could do anything. You know, my first boyfriend was a lot like that." "Oh, Kami-sama!" They both had a good laugh. "You know, you talk a lot about happiness but ever since you opened your restaurant you've been a raving workaholic. I've been meaning to tell you for a long time, you really need to get out more." "I'm always telling myself that in just a few more weeks or months I'll get everything there running the way I like it, then I can take some time off." Rei's expression sobered. "You know, we never gave up on you, but the fact is you had a very close brush with death. There is a future where we all live a thousand years, but as Setsuna never tires of reminding us that's not written in stone. I had a chance at happiness dangling in front of me, and by the time I decided to nibble it was taken away. I know you can't settle for second best, but sometimes you have to take some time off from your dream, take time to find love and happiness. If you don't, you'll just end up regretting it later." Makoto smiled. "Funny, a while ago I was telling Ami pretty much the same thing. I guess I should start taking my own advice." "And why not? Everybody else takes your advice." "Physician heal thyself, is that it?" "Something like that." "Say, maybe you can get me into the Order too, it looks like a fine place to meet great looking guys with interesting careers." Rei sighed. "The scary thing is, I think you're serious." Makoto was about to confirm that when they heard the door open. It swung open quickly and Minako came running in. She stopped as soon as she spotted them. "Hey you two, that astral detector thing just spotted something *really* big in Chiba district. We're all meeting in the main hall." They were both on their feet already. "In the hall?" Makoto asked. "Are we going to teleport straight there?" Minako hesitated for a moment. "Takada and his people look scared. They're getting weird reports. We should go meet with them." They ran down the hallway and into the enormous central hall. Everybody else was gathered there, including a couple of agents Makoto had never seen before. The room above their heads was filled with a ghostly image that appeared to be a constellation of shimmering stars. Some of them were dancing wildly. As Makoto watched, one of those winked out. "There goes another one," Noriko said. Takada looked to see that Minako had brought the last of the Senshi, then directed his attention back to the display. "We're not getting a good fix on it," he said, keeping his eyes glued to the image overhead. "Something is making us lose contact with more and more of the crystals. That's never happened before." Saori approached the group. She had been standing slightly aside, listening on her cellular phone. "I just got a visual report from the police in Chiba. It's something like the phenomenon surrounding the dark crystal that appeared in Juban four years ago." "The Dark Gate," Luna said from atop Ami's shoulder. "They're already starting to evacuate people. They're also reporting some sort of strange dark thundercloud that's suddenly formed. I'm not sure how much of this to believe, but they're saying it's already covering most of Chiba." "Daniel, is this anything like you were expecting?" Takada asked. He shook his head. In the short time Makoto had met him he had struck her as being at least as unflappable as Setsuna. But he really looked worried. "No, I wouldn't have expected anything at all so dramatic." "Maybe something's gone wrong," K'Theelm's suggested. Makoto's heart started to flutter. Usagi could be right in the middle of this. "Saori, do you have an accurate position for that report?" "Probably within a couple of kilometres, anyway. They're viewing it from a distance." "Communicate it to the field commanders. The airborne units will get there first, so they won't run into the evacuation. But I want you to keep in contact with the police there, see if you can't arrange a corridor for the ground units, I don't want them getting delayed." "Yes sir." As she walked away she pulled a tiny headset out of her jacket pocket and hooked it over her ear. "Sir, another report." It was one of the agents Makoto hadn't seen before. "From the shrine in Chiba. They say that after the shadow passed over them, all the wards and artifacts in the shrine lost their power completely." "The shadow?" "That's what they're calling it, sir. It's not a cloud." "Smith, when are those choppers getting here?" "Ten minutes, tops." "Okay, we're proceeding as planned. Minako, based on what we've heard I have to advise against trying to teleport into that area. This interference is like nothing I've ever heard of, I have no idea how it would affect your teleportation spell. We've got space in the choppers for all of you, we can have you there in fifteen minutes." "That may be fifteen minutes too long," Minako said. "Venus, I have to agree with Takada-san," Daniel said. "If this is what I suspect, attempting something like a teleport into the area could be disastrous." "Damn," Minako muttered. After just a moment she nodded. "Okay. We'll go there with you." "Then let's gather out front," Takada said. He killed the astral detector display, gave some last minute instructions to Noriko, then led the group to the great double doors that led outside. Smith was the first to spot it. "Mother of God!" It had moved just close enough now to be visible over the line of pine trees at the edge of the clearing. It was like an arc of blue-white lightning eating up the sky, leaving utter blackness in its wake. It was moving visibly, spreading out, looming over them. "I don't believe it," Daniel whispered. "What is it?" Setsuna asked him, moving up beside him. "It's a Null Field. And may heaven help us all." "What does that mean?" Takada asked. "Current languages lack the proper terms. About all I can say is that it will suppress just about all activities that you would call magic or psionics. But I had only ever heard of it being used over very limited areas as a sort of ward. For it to exist on this scale ..." He looked intently at the director. "Takada-san, whatever is happening, we have to stop it. Left unchecked, I think this field could spread right across the globe. If that were to happen, there's no telling what the result would be." "We fully intend to put a stop to this," Takada said. "Daniel," Minako said. "If we go under that field, will we lose the ability to lose our powers as well?" "Venus, I honestly don't know," he said. He looked truly frightened now. Setsuna took his hand, her own composure starting to waver. "Well, we should at least transform here just in case we can't once we're under that thing." She reached behind her, and then held her transformation pen over her head. In a flash of golden light she transformed into Sailor Venus. Makoto did likewise. She was enveloped in shimmering green light, and emerged from it as Sailor Jupiter. In moments, eight Sailor Senshi and Tuxedo Mask were standing in front of the cathedral. They said their goodbyes to Luna and Artemis, and Venus left them in the care of Noriko and the other agents who were staying behind. Takada got them divided into three groups, for boarding the choppers. In minutes the first one came into view. It descended quickly into the clearing in front of them. It was a sleek black single-rotor helicopter with no markings and no visible weapons. It was certainly loud enough, but nowhere near as deafening as Makoto would have expected a helicopter to be. Presumably it was a stealth plane or something. Two identical ones were hovering overhead. The side door of the one in front of them slid open. Smith led Makoto, the other Inner Senshi and Tuxedo Mask out to it, instructing them to bend low. They piled in. The chopper took off even before they had closed the door and gotten strapped into their seats. As they gained altitude, Makoto could see the true enormity of the blackness spreading over them. It covered the sky in front of them. In minutes they were under it, and the sun was blotted out by the darkness. Behind them it was high noon, in front of them it was blackest night. Makoto closed her eyes, resolved not to show fear. *Mother, father, give me strength.* ***** **What the hell was that stupid girl thinking?** Akechi said. **Was she trying to get us killed? If Yui hadn't put up that barrier, we'd all be toast!** **She's just a bit out of it,** Shoji said. **People tend to get too focused when they're under one of Hitomi's suggestions. They forget little details.** **The house is getting totalled,** Yui said. **A house for a palace,** Shoji said. **Fair exchange.** **This whole neighbourhood will be history soon,** Hitomi said. They were watching from a safe distance now. After that explosion had blown the roof off the garage they had beat a hasty retreat under the cover of Yui's PK barrier. In just a few minutes, the Seed Crystal had grown to engulf the house. And that hole in the sky was getting bigger and bigger. Hitomi wasn't sure what she had expected it to be like, but it certainly wasn't this. People were running around like headless chickens. There weren't too many, this wasn't a very densely developed area. In a remarkably short time, a police car came moving down the street, an amplified voice telling everybody that the area was being evacuated. The car stopped near them and the policeman informed them that meant them too. With the right look and the right words, Hitomi sent him on his way. It looked like people didn't need much prompting. Cars and vans full of families went rushing about, and in short order the area was deserted. **It's growing incredibly fast,** Hitomi said. **It is and it isn't,** Shoji said. **The palace is enormous, at this rate it'll take hours to get to full size. Damn, I wish that girl had taken us inside with her. This thing is going to attract all sorts of unwanted attention.** **It's getting really dark,** Yui said. **I don't like it.** The dark hole in the sky was stretching almost out to the horizon in all directions now. There was just a strip of blue sky all around them, and the shimmering column of light shooting from the Crystal up into the sky to light up the countryside. Hitomi had already gotten used to the thunder, it was just background noise now. But she didn't like this either. The blackness overhead was unnatural, not like a night sky at all. It must be what the event horizon of a black hole would look like. **Shoji, somebody's coming,** Akechi said. They all looked where Akechi was pointing. As the group of people came out from behind the shadow of a great tree, they became more clearly illuminated by the dazzling glow of the column of lightning shooting up from the Seed Crystal. **Shit,** Shoji said. **She sure didn't waste any time.** It was the Matriarch and about a dozen of her guardsmen. **What the hell do we do now?** Akechi asked. **Calm down,** Shoji said. **We'll just give her a present, that's all.** They all waited as the group approached. The men were walking, but the Matriarch was floating over the ground. Not surprising, Hitomi thought. Basking in the glow of the light, she felt like all of her own powers were enhanced, that it would actually be easier to levitate over the ground than to walk. The Matriarch had wasted no time taking advantage of that. **Greetings, Matriarch,** Shoji said. **Welcome to our new home.** Himiko lowered herself back down to the ground. She glanced at the growing Seed Crystal and then glared at Shoji. **Just what in all the hells is happening here?** **Sailor Moon is making our Crystal Palace for us,** Shoji said. **As soon as she's finished, we can all move in.** Himiko looked at him as if he had told a bad joke. She let out a long, rasping, mirthless laugh. **Oh, you think it's that simple, do you? Well, let me point out a few facts to you. Whatever she's doing is sapping us all of our power. Anyone under this blackness who is much further than this from the Seed Crystal loses their birthright, gets turned into an outsider, an animal. That's why we're all teleporting here.** Hitomi followed the Matriarch's gaze. There were other people around them now. And more appearing every moment. Some made their way towards them. Many of those wore the same peasant garb as the Matriarch's guardsmen. Others wore the dyed hair that was supposed to be popular among the black sheep who held territories. They seemed to be more or less tolerating each other, or at least ignoring each other. **I have no idea what else this blackness is doing,** Himiko continued. **For all we know your master plan has blotted out the sun forever. Our reign in the palace may be very short indeed. And even if you haven't brought an end to our world, you may have brought us to ruin. Your little trick brought the Sailor Senshi down on your mother's household like furies, they slaughtered everyone they could find until they found out we weren't really holding their Princess. They're probably on their way here already, to wreak their vengeance on us. This is the last place in the world we want to be, but thanks to you it may soon be the only place in the world we can live as Ancients. You've thrown us into a war with the Sailor Senshi, with people from another planet and the ancestors only know who else. It's a war I intend to win, because it's probably our only hope of living, if there is any hope at all. I don't have any more words to waste on you. I need to know everything you know about what this Sailor Moon is doing and I need to know it now.** She pointed to the ground in front of her. **On you knees.** Hitomi shivered. They all knew what she meant. A mind probe. **No,** Shoji said. **Sailor Moon is under Hitomi's spell, she'll only obey the four of us. If she sees you try and harm us, she won't let you into the palace.** **Is that so? Well, if she can see and hear us, then let's speak with her, and make sure we all understand each other.** Hitomi glanced at Shoji. He was really starting to sweat. He was losing it. **When she's ... when she's finished making the palace, she'll come back out of it and she'll be under my command.** **She'll be under anybody's command,** Himiko said. **I know how Hitomi's power works. One master will be as good as the next.** Shoji was panting. **I swear, I'll tell her to blast you to atoms! She can do it!** **I don't have time for this,** Himiko said. She gestured. Shoji convulsed. Then suddenly he was on fire. He was too bright to look at, like a human sun. Yui screamed, a horrible animal wail that went on and on and on. Shoji's ashes scattered to the ground. **One of you will have to give me what I want.** Akechi grabbed a hold of Yui. **Yui, get us the hell out of here!** Hitomi grabbed her too, an instant before they shifted somewhere else. They were in the middle of a country road somewhere. It was a lot darker here, the column of lightning was further away now. Yui was still wailing. Hitomi tried to say something to her, but couldn't. Something was terribly wrong. Then her racing heart wavered. She remembered what Himiko had said about the blackness sapping away their powers. They all just slumped down onto the road, not even having motivation enough to move off of it. Yui curled up into a ball. She was still wailing when the headlights pulled up to them. The men in dark glasses who came out of the cars asked if the dark haired girl was Yui and Hitomi said yes. Yui screamed and fought like a wolverine when they tried to take her, but they just zapped her with something and she went limp. They took Hitomi and Akechi in the other car. Hitomi didn't even care who they were, as long as they weren't working for the Matriarch. It was the end of the world, all she could ask for was a quiet place to die. ***** Takada led the four Outer Senshi into the second helicopter. They took off, leaving Saori to wait with Daniel and the refugees for the third one. Soon the three choppers were flying in formation low over the Tokyo skyline. By the time they got out over the bay, they were in shadow. The blackness was spreading out to engulf the city. Uranus looked out through the front window between the two pilots. There was a column of light at the horizon, lighting up the surrounding countryside with a silvery, shimmering glow. Involuntarily, she took Neptune's hand. "God, this is worse than Galaxia's shadow." She glanced at Neptune. Her lover's face had lost its grim resolve, she had a look of dread. Uranus squeezed her hand, getting her attention. "The vision," Neptune said. "My vision of the Palace surrounded by darkness." "I've seen something like this in a vision as well," Pluto said. "It looks like my vision of The Silence." "The Silence?" Takada asked. "It's what I would have done to the world had Sailor Moon not saved me," Saturn said. "As the Senshi of Destruction, I have that power." "I see. A doomsday weapon." They rode in silence for a while. The column of light spearing the sky loomed bigger and brighter. The blackness crept closer and closer to the horizon all around them. Takada reacted to something he heard over a set of headphones he was wearing. "One of our helicopters was shot down when it approached the Seed Crystal," he informed them. "Some sort of plasma beams shot from ESPers who appeared in the air around them. The others are setting down at least two kilometres away from the Crystal, we'll do likewise." "Damn," Uranus cursed. "I knew we should have tried the teleport. Now they've beaten us to it." "It sounds like there's an awful lot of them already," Takada said. "Without the ground forces that are coming to back us up, you could easily have been overwhelmed." Takada had described to them the forces the Order was bringing to bear. It all sounded very impressive, but Uranus couldn't shake the feeling that things were just spinning out of control. She had been envisioning the eight Sailor Senshi taking out the four ESPers and getting the Princess out of the area, all done in a matter of minutes, all nice and neat. But now they were going to be thrown into a war with a legion of paranormals whose powers they could only guess at. "The advance airborne units have landed and linked up with field agents we had in the area," Takada explained. "They've found locations for field headquarters, we'll be landing at the nearest one." The pilot spoke to somebody over his radio, then turned to a slightly different vector, following the lead chopper. "I can see it," Hotaru said. "I can see the Palace." Uranus squinted, looked down at the base of the column of lightning. Yes, she could see it too. It was difficult to judge scale and distance in the shimmering light, but it was definitely a much smaller version of the palace Setsuna had described to them. But if it was visible at this distance so soon, it must be growing at a phenomenal rate. They were losing speed. Soon the lead helicopter dipped down. It was already obvious where it was going to land, some sort of office building with a big parking lot in front. It was empty, just a couple of big black sedans were parked in front of the building. They had been flying quite low, probably because the pilots were nervous about the phenomenon overhead. It hardly seemed worth bothering, when the edge of the disk of blackness had gone overhead it had looked to be many kilometres in the air, maybe even out in space. The light was still not that good, even this close to the phenomenon, but Uranus could see they were in an area of rolling hills where only the best land had been developed. There were many pockets of woods, green space and bamboo stands in between the neighbourhoods, factories and businesses. They waited for the lead chopper to disgorge its passengers and rise again, then they touched down on the same spot. Everybody already had unstrapped themselves, so as soon as Takada slid the big door open they leapt out and ran over to where the others were standing. "Venus, did you see the Palace?" Uranus asked. "Yes, we saw." "It's happening very quickly, we should get there as fast as we can." "Smith says they're bringing prisoners here for interrogation, we should wait for them." Uranus frowned. "Prisoners? What do we expect to learn from them?" "They're the ones who took Usagi." The third chopper landed, and the last group disembarked. The chopper lifted off as soon as they were clear. Saori ran over to Takada, interrupting his conversation with the agent who had met them here. "News from the local police. The evacuation is all but complete. They've secured a clear corridor for the ground forces. Lead elements are already coming through, they'll be at the forward base in minutes." "Yes, they've informed me," Takada said. "Smith, what's the word on those prisoners?" "Three of them, positively identified as the rogues. They'll be here in just one or two minutes." He pulled his dark glasses out of his jacket pocket and put them on. "Shall I conduct the interrogation myself?" "Please. And no need to be squeamish." "From what I've been told, they will be very accommodating." He turned to where Daniel and Pluto were standing. "Daniel, our little poker game convinced me that you really are a lie detector. I doubt these three will be any trouble, but could you keep your ears open anyway?" "If they're lying, I'll let you know." Pluto's eyes narrowed. "Daniel ..." "It wasn't for serious money." About a minute later Uranus saw two sets of headlights coming down the road. Two more black sedans came racing towards them, squealing their tires as they turned into the big parking lot. They raced towards the group of people in front of the building, and came to a screeching halt, one behind the other. Immediately the doors all opened and Suits emerged, three from each car. Two of the ones from the first car each led one prisoner, a man and a young woman with white hair. They walked beside their captors meekly, shoulders drooped, seeming to be in a state of shock. Two of the men from the second car were having somewhat more trouble with their prisoner. They were half-carrying, half-dragging another young woman between them. Even though it looked like she could barely walk, she was fighting them every inch of the way. She panted, every breath coming as a rasping whimper. Every now and then she would wail pitifully. Her wild, staring eyes darted between the assembled people, as if trying to watch all of them at once, wondering which would be the one to kill her. Smith pointed to her. "Why hasn't that one been sedated?" "Gave her enough to drop a horse," one of the men said. Smith turned to Mars. "She's the deaf-mute you saw?" "Yes." Uranus was surprised to see no hatred in Mars' eyes. She looked upon her grandfather's killer with pity. "She's no use to us." Smith thumbed the building. "Give her enough to drop two horses and secure her in there." They moved to comply and Smith walked over to the other two, being held side by side by their respective captors. Smith put his open hands on his hips and looked at one and then the other. He pointed at the man. "There were four of you. So where's the deaf girl's boyfriend?" "Shoji's dead," he said tonelessly. "The Matriarch killed him." "So, I guess you were lucky enough to get out of there alive. Congratulations." He pointed at the girl. "You. Just what in hell did you tell our Princess to do?" "We told her to make the Palace for us." "So tell us what happened. Short version." "She turned into Sailor Moon and there was this glowing crystal in her hands. She walked right into the Seed Crystal. Then it blew the roof off the garage. We got out. The crystal started to grow, and it got dark. Then the Matriarch showed up." "If we take you there, can you tell the Princess to put a stop to this?" She shook her head slowly, looking more and more like a deer caught in headlights. She spoke with difficulty. "I ... don't know. We couldn't get into the Seed Crystal the way she did. I think I saw Shoji try. I don't think anybody can get in. She ... uh, she'll probably come out when she's done. I guess." "Then she'll obey you since she's under your spell, right?" She shook her head. "No, not just me. Another Ancient could probably put her under their ... uh, their spell. The Matriarch could probably do it." "And do you think that's what she plans on doing?" "Yes." "And do you think there's any point in trying to tell her that's a bad idea?" "No." Smith turned to Takada. "We about done with these two?" Takada looked around the gathered people, apparently looking to see if there were any other questions. "It looks like we are." "Fine." Smith thumbed the building again. "Secure them." The two men took their prisoners into the building. Takada addressed the group. "Okay, it looks like the only person who is at all likely to be able to do an orderly shutdown of whatever is happening has barricaded herself inside the Palace. And she's not likely to come out until she's finished, which could probably be as little as a few hours from now. I see two options. Break into the Palace and bring her out of her trance, or destroy the Palace." "You can't destroy it while the Princess is in there," Uranus said flatly. "It's a moot point," Setsuna said. "We couldn't destroy it." "We have a nuke on standby," Takada said. "You can't be serious!" Uranus shouted. "Takada-san, you can't do that," Setsuna said. Her voice was calm, but utterly cold. "The basic nature of this phenomenon is to absorb energy into itself. Right now it is absorbing from the Earth what might be termed its manna, for lack of a proper word. But it could likely absorb other forms of energy. I have little idea what would happen were it suddenly to absorb even a small part of a sixty kiloton blast detonated four hundred meters over it. Do you really want to find out?" Takada raised an eyebrow. "Interesting that you correctly identified the yield and cruising altitude of the missile we have on standby." "I told her," Smith said. He shrugged at Takada's dark look. "You said to share all tactical information." "So I did. If we are unable to destroy the palace, it stands to reason we are just as unlikely to be able to blow a hole in it." "Why do we even need to do that?" Venus asked. "If it's already turning into the Palace, can't we just go in the front door?" "Presumably it is barred," Takada said. "Otherwise, the Ancients would undoubtedly be moving inside it. Saori, is there any sign of that?" Saori had been half listening to the conversation, and half listening to reports coming in through her headset. "No sir. All indications from the forward observation posts are that the Ancients are deploying around the Palace." "Too bad we can't just wheel up a Trojan Horse," Smith said. "Bull." Daniel saw the curious looks he was getting. "It was supposed to have been a bull. We had to wheel it to the gate of Troy before dawn, so we didn't have time to attach the horns. Nobody ever thought to tell Homer." "Well, Sailor Moon was able to get in," Pluto said. "Other Sailor Senshi will likely be able to do the same." "Then all we need to do is get to the front gate," Venus said. "You don't know that," Takada said. "Earlier Setsuna speculated that the Seed Crystal might respond only to a member of the royal family of the Moon Kingdom. What if we get you to the gate and you can't get in?" Venus shrugged. "Well, at least we'll have a wall at our back." "Venus, that's what's called having your back to a wall," Uranus said. "Same difference. You have a better idea?" "No." "Okay, then we'll plan on that basis," Takada said. "Sailor Venus," Jeneth said. She walked closer to the orange-clad Sailor Senshi. Sometime during their helicopter flight the refugees must have dropped their glamours, conserving their energy. Jeneth regarded Venus with those haunting, featureless dark eyes. "Even if you succeed in finding the Princess, she will be under that woman's spell. She might not even recognize you. And if you try to turn her from the task she was given, she might regard you as an enemy." "I can help her," Saturn said. "If I can touch her, I can cure her of whatever that woman did to her." Jeneth thought about that for a moment. "That might work. It would be much like what that man did to Jupiter, except much milder and more subtle, very selective disruption to cause a sort of blindsight without causing damage. You just have to remove the disruption, let her see the truth of what is happening." "I say we do it," Venus said. Takada nodded. "Okay. The vanguard is marshalling about a kilometre closer. We'll take the cars." They piled into three of the sedans. The ride took just a couple of minutes. They disembarked in front of a small industrial building. There were several vehicles parked on the lawn in front of it, which was hidden from the Palace by a row of trees. They were hummers, off-road vehicles riding high off the ground on enormous, widely spaced tires. They were all painted black, with no markings. They had been modified from others Uranus had seen. They were all open in the back. Some had four or more Suits sitting in open seats in the back. Each man was cradling a big shining chrome thing that with a little imagination could be called a gun. They must be the weapons Takada had referred to as plasma rifles. Whatever that meant. They looked mean enough, anyway. Two of the hummers each had four of the plasma rifles fitted to a mounting in tandem, allowing the one manning it to fire in any direction. Uranus could distinctly hear a rumble like thunder now. At this range, the column of lightning spearing the sky was dazzling. Takada went to talk with what was presumably the man in charge, then came trotting back to them. "Basis the reconnaissance in force that the airborne units made, the Ancients won't go this far out from the Palace. But as soon as we get any closer we should consider ourselves in hostile territory. They've got people flying overhead and they've got snipers who have made themselves invisible. We only spotted the latter because of their auras." He tapped the dark glasses he had just put on. "We'll try to warn you of those. On this side of the palace the observation posts have identified what looks like a gate, we'll make for that. We don't have enough forces here for a general assault around the perimeter, and we won't for almost an hour. Much as I would prefer to wait, I don't think we can. The vehicles have wards. They seem to work this close to the Palace, so they should afford some protection. Stick close to them. Venus, I can't get my men too strung out or risk having them cut off, we might only be able to provide you cover so far." "I understand," she said. "We'll go the rest of the way ourselves if we have to." Takada turned to the refugees. "K'Theelm, Thetan, I want you to cover us from the air. But if it looks like they've seen through your cloak, get out. Jeneth, we've set up a medical emergency station at this base, I want you here. Daniel, I'd like you here too. If God forbid these people sue for peace your gift will come in handy. Any questions?" There were none. The Senshi moved to take positions around the idling vehicles. Uranus looked around to see where everybody was in the formation, filing for future reference. She suddenly noticed Mamoru beside her. He was no longer Tuxedo Mask. "Endymion...?" He smiled. His black and silver armour shone in the bright, flickering light. "As we come closer to the Palace, I've been feeling this surge of power. It was all I could do to even stop the transformation, I decided to just go with it." "You can still toss those armour-piercing roses of yours, can't you?" "By the bunch, if I have to." Takada and Smith each climbed into one of the hummers, and they headed out. Uranus saw Thetan and K'Theelm shimmer and fade away. Along with the other Senshi Uranus trotted along beside the hummers. They came out from behind the row of trees and continued down a road flanked by occasional buildings. As they came to the crest of a small hill, the Palace came into full view. It shone just as brightly as the column of lightning that shot up from it. The central spire already looked to be at least a couple of hundred meters high, maybe more. Abruptly, the Suit manning the mounted guns on the hummer beside her swung his weapons around. Four intensely bright shafts of strobing blue- white light stabbed out towards a building to their left, accompanied by a sharp staccato like a machine gun. Somebody who thought they had been invisible was blown to pieces. There were cries of alarm from some of the Senshi. Some of them even slowed down for a moment. But whey they saw that the column was just continuing on its way, they picked up the pace again. The Suit grinned down at Uranus. "That should discourage them." "Or bring them down on us like hornets." She looked behind her. The trailing vehicle was dropping behind, and its passengers disembarked. "Why are they dropping back?" "To secure our path back and flush out any more ESPers in hiding," the Suit said. "Was that part of the plan?" "I think the director is just rolling with the punches." Which was a nice way of saying he was making it up as he went along. "I'm glad you guys are with us." "Feeling's mutual, I heard how you three kicked ass at the Animal Kingdom. By the way, won't you get tired running like that?" "Don't worry about it." They had picked up the pace a bit. Uranus had seen Venus running alongside the lead vehicle, probably convincing them that Sailor Senshi wouldn't get tired from a mere kilometre run. There was the sound of a plasma rifle again, and up ahead three shimmering beams of light stabbed the sky, converging on one point. Something at that point flared and disintegrated. "One of them trying to teleport on top of us," the Suit said. "We already found out that they can't put up a PK barrier right after teleporting. And the spatial distortion shows up like a beacon in our glasses. I don't think they're going to try that again." "You should have issued those shades to us too," Uranus said. "They take some getting used to. But they'd look good on you." The next ones actually took a shot at them, relying on cover rather than invisibility. Mars and Pluto dodged their fireballs just a split second before Jupiter and Neptune hit them with Oak Evolution and Deep Submerge. Uranus timed her own attack accordingly. Just as their PK barriers were flickering from the attacks that had bounced off them, the World Shaking slammed into them. Their broken bodies crumpled to the ground without any fuss. The column hardly even slowed down. Uranus heard what she assumed to be plasma rifle fire from behind them. So their rearguard had company. They weren't the only ones. Mercury was the first to spot them, not surprising since she had her visor up. The vehicles suddenly broke up the column, some going left and right onto roads that crossed the one they were on, the Suits disembarking and taking up firing positions. The hummer Uranus was shadowing came to a halt. They were in an open area with rice fields on both sides. It was almost like Takada was deliberately making them into a target. "Why are we stopping?" Uranus asked the Suit. He had his guns angled up now. "Let us take this group. We want to convince them that approaching us from above is a very bad idea." Now Uranus saw them too. They were coming all at once, maybe about thirty people flying through the air. It was hard to make out detail with them silhouetted against the flickering light of the Palace, but at least they stood out. As they approached they all started to swoop down on the formation of hummers. Uranus tensed up. She was beginning to wonder what the Suits were waiting for. As soon as the first of the Ancients shot off a fireball, every single plasma rifle opened up at the same time. The few Ancients who either didn't have PK barriers or hadn't bothered to put them up simply disintegrated. The ones who came under fire from one of the mounted quad guns lasted hardly a second longer. All the others were thrown into pandemonium. They were all at least thrown back by the fire, their PK barriers quivering and shimmering, impaled on the lances of strobing light. One after another the barriers collapsed, and the people inside disappeared behind explosions that threw out expanding clouds of brightly glowing gas. A couple of them managed to get off another shot at the forward vehicles. The lightning bolt and plasma ball bounced off an invisible barrier. Takada had been right about the wards, they worked fine. The agents kept up the fire even as the survivors were scattering in retreat. There didn't appear to be even a dozen of them left. The crisscross of afterimage lines slowly faded from Uranus' retinas. A ball of energy suddenly shot out of nowhere, just out of a point in space, and hit another of the Ancients, sending him tumbling to the ground far below trailing smoke. Uranus grinned. Thetan getting the parting shot. They had to wait a moment while the marksmen remounted and the hummers got back on the main road. Uranus looked up at the Suit manning the mounted guns. The barrels were glowing a dull red, and the air above them rippled with heat shimmer. The Suit smiled. "Next time I think they'll be a bit more careful." "Either that or a lot madder." "There you go taking the negative view again." "Yes, she can be such a drag sometimes," Neptune said from behind them. Coming from anybody else, that would have been very annoying. Uranus just looked back and winked at her. In moments they were on the move again, and Uranus' mind was focused exclusively on scanning for hostiles. The palace was looming larger. She wondered how much of that was due to it just getting bigger. Mercury gave the warning again, but this time it was scant warning indeed. They came from everywhere at once. Mostly on the ground jumping from the cover of buildings or greenery, and the few who were flying kept low. The Ancients had learned quickly. The column was assailed from both sides. At first it was all exchange of fire, the Senshi dodging and the hummers absorbing them with their wards. Uranus tossed off attacks at a rate that astonished her. It was as if in the presence of the Palace her power was inexhaustible. Neptune standing beside her seemed to be equally indefatigable. But the Ancients were getting closer. A man in peasant garb came at her with a leap that seemed to defy gravity, power glowing in his hands. Not being in a position to fire she had to improvise. She sidestepped, spun and drove a kick into his back that shattered his spine with a satisfying crunch. She suddenly felt herself being picked up off the ground by an invisible force. She flew at hellish speed along the ground and crashed straight into the side of a hummer. She crumpled to the ground, stunned and helpless. A freak with an orange mohawk and pierced everything came flying in along the ground with a blazing white kinetite in his hand. He raised it over his head. Uranus braced herself. Four parallel lightning bolts shot like arrows over her head, blowing the freak into two bloody halves and a cloud of pink steam. Uranus got to her feet and looked up to see the Suit with his glowing quad guns smiling down at her, just on time for the fireball to hit him from behind and incinerate him. Uranus threw her arms up in front of her, staggering back, the residual flames licking at her. She screamed in pain and rage. She brought her arm up over her head and her talisman appeared. She leaped over the hummer, and with one motion she unsheathed the Space Sword and beheaded the man who had killed the Suit whose name she didn't even know. Another leap brought her back at Neptune's side. Before she landed she had seen another vehicle down the line burst into flame. Their wards were being overwhelmed and it was all going to hell. "We're sitting ducks!" Neptune held her mirror out before her and it blazed brighter than the sun. The three punks who had been running at them staggered back, and fell dazed to the ground. "They've got us trapped, we have nowhere to go," she said. There seemed to be less plasma rifle fire now. "Everyone!" Venus' voice came on both their communicators. "To the front of the column now!" They followed the order without question, running flat out. Half the vehicles they passed were burning. All the Ancients they came across were taken utterly by surprise at the speed of their passage. Ones that came too close got a taste of the Space Sword. Uranus didn't even see them fall, hardly even breaking her stride. She saw Endymion running ahead. One Ancient died learning that his sword passed through PK barriers just as easily as Uranus' talisman did. The lead vehicle was being assailed from all sides, the Inner Senshi and a group of Suits with rifles at their shoulders blazing away in all directions. More Ancients were running in from the direction of the Palace, far too many. Two jets streaked overhead, passing in front of the Palace. A second later, the ground in front of the lead vehicle disappeared under a hellish inferno. Uranus felt like she was looking into a blast furnace. All the Ancients in front of them disappeared under the roiling yellow-orange clouds that slowly turned black as they rose up into the sky. Unnatural purple lightning flashed within and between the clouds. Uranus suspected it was something more than just incendiary bombs. The Ancients to their sides just looked back in disbelief. The agents wasted no time in picking off the easy targets, causing most of the others to run in panic. When there was a lull in the firing, Takada stood up from his place in the command vehicle. "It's not as bad as it looks," he called out to them. "Something new that dissipates almost immediately. I've bought you some time, use it." "You heard him," Venus called out. "We're leaving!" Without another word she ran straight into the line of smoke before them. Endymion and all the Senshi came in behind her. Despite Takada's assurances, the air was almost unbreathable and Uranus could barely keep her eyes open, they stung so badly. She wrinkled her nose. So this was what that guy meant about the smell of napalm. They emerged on the other side of the scorched earth, all coughing and blinking back tears, desperately trying to get their sight back so they could see their enemy. There was no immediate threat, the sudden attack from the air had thrown the Ancients into a panic. But there were still plenty of them visible in the open spaces between them and the nearby Palace, which probably meant there were more behind cover that they couldn't see. Some of them had already noticed the Senshi. "Mercury," Venus said. "We're making a run for it, give us cover." Mercury crossed her arms before her then flung them out wide. Wisps of cloud shot out in front of them, growing and thickening at phenomenal speed. In seconds, all the ground in front of them was shrouded in a mist that shimmered under the light of the column of lightning. Uranus could feel the thunder in her bones now, resonating through the ground and the air. "Let's go!" Venus called, and they were in motion again. They stuck close enough to keep each other in sight. They ran across yards, leaped over fences and swerved around houses as they made their way through the widely spaced homes of the suburb. The Ancients they ran into were stumbling around blinded, they didn't even see what hit them. Uranus figured they must be getting near the gate by now. She and Neptune sped up their pace to match that of Pluto and Saturn, who were running ahead. From behind and to the side she could hear Venus shouting something about not being separated. They must have zigged at that last house instead of zagged. Well, that probably didn't matter much at this point. They just needed to get Saturn to the gate as quickly as they could. A hurricane wind slammed into Uranus like a wall, sending her staggering. She saw Neptune literally fly past her. She reached out wildly, somehow grabbing a hold of Neptune's hand. They were tumbling over and over through the air, Uranus had no idea which way was up and which was down. The world was just a screaming wind and dust that assailed her like needles. She saw the ground leap up at her just half a second before she hit. She managed to more or less cushion her fall, but it still knocked the wind out of her. The mist around them had disappeared. Uranus fought the buffeting wind, looked around her with slitted eyes. Pluto and Saturn were lying nearby, both trying unsuccessfully to get back onto their feet. Saturn still had a deathgrip on Pluto's Garnet Rod. Presumably that was how they had stuck together. Nobody else was visible. There were leaves and whole branches and debris from shattered houses flying about. Uranus looked up. A great, faintly glowing whirlwind of mist spun madly over their heads, the Senshi were just at the edge of it. It was not narrow like a tornado, but a great fat thing like a dust devil seen at fast-forward. The Outer Senshi were between the cyclone and the Palace. Perversely, the Ancients' conjured storm had brought them closer to their goal. Four of the Ancients floated around the cyclone, their arms held out to it, their eyes glowing. They were just close enough to throw and attack at them, but Uranus could barely stand, let alone get off a good shot. Thetan and K'Theelm appeared right behind one of them. Thetan reached out and blew the woman's head off with a force blast. The tornado wavered and writhed. The refugees disappeared again. The two Ancients who had seen what happened abandoned their task and flew back towards the Palace. The third soon followed and the wind died down to nothing. The dust and smaller debris started drifting back down to the ground. She saw Neptune get to her feet. She was holding her arm, wincing. "How is it?" Uranus asked. She shook her head. "Broken," she said in a strained voice. "Can't use it." "We've got company," they heard Saturn say. Uranus scanned the area around them. Mercury's mist was all but gone now. And the storm had levelled just about any cover that had existed, they were standing in the middle of open space strewn with rubble. They were also in the middle of a slowly converging circle of Ancients, with more coming behind them. Their eyes were all glowing. There was still no sign of the other Senshi. "They're going to do a combined attack," Pluto said. "Everyone stick close. Saturn, on my signal put up the Silence Wall." "It won't last long against all of them," Uranus said. "It won't have to." Uranus wondered just what she meant by that. "I'm ready," Saturn said. She held her Silence Glaive before her. The four Senshi formed a circle. Pluto brandished her Garnet Rod, gripping it tightly. "After they attack, be ready to run for the gate." "Pluto," Neptune said, "What are you-" "Saturn, now!" Pluto said sharply. Intent on watching the advancing enemy, Uranus barely caught the movement. She took in a breath to shout a warning to Saturn, but it was too late. The shimmering barrier was up. From just outside the barrier, Pluto raised the Garnet Rod over her head with both hands. She brought it down and snapped it in half across her raised knee, shouting at the top of her lungs. "DEAD SCREAM!" End Chapter 14 --------------701171312770-- From - Sun Jan 11 12:23:06 1998 Return-Path: Received: from smtp26.bellglobal.com (smtp26.bellglobal.com [204.101.251.56]) by pop50.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA29522 for ; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:51:08 -0500 (EST) Received: from access.mbnet.mb.ca (root@access.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.11]) by smtp26.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA06881 for ; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:51:04 -0500 (EST) Received: from ts7m-4.mbnet.mb.ca (ts7m-4.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.119]) by access.mbnet.mb.ca (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id NAA11691; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 13:48:50 -0600 (CST) Message-ID: <34B7FB17.5CB8@mbnet.mb.ca> Date: Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:49:59 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Win16; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 15] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------4E541C2F21E3" X-UIDL: e95b498ac4cc7bdfa67522fe74d1dbb5 X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: -30494 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------4E541C2F21E3 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com --------------4E541C2F21E3 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; name="SECRET15.TXT" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SECRET15.TXT" Secrets Chapter 15 - Serenity Mars lay flat on the ground, her eyes clenched tight, letting the hurricane wind howl over her. She felt that if she so much as lifted her head up, one of the larger pieces of flying debris would take her head off. She took cold comfort in the fact that nothing would be able to get near her or attack her while she was in the middle of this conjured storm. Or at least she hoped not. At first she thought it was her imagination, that her senses were just being numbed by the awful storm. But the wind was dying. In a matter of seconds, it had eased off to the point where Mars risked lifting herself off the ground to look around. The first thing that caught her eye was the swirling cloud of dust floating in front of the Palace. It looked eerie, being backlit by the glowing crystalline structure. Shafts of light played through the air as the silvery light fought to break through the slowly dispersing dust cloud. Mars looked at her more immediate surroundings. The residential neighbourhood they had been running through was in ruins, most of the trees and houses levelled. Jupiter and Venus were just getting to their feet. Endymion was pulling himself out from under what had probably been a support beam for a house. Mercury lay some distance away. She wasn't moving. The wind was just about gone now, so Mars ran over to her. She fell down to her knees beside her friend and bent over her. Ami was breathing. Mars put a hand over Mercury's forehead, reaching out with her mind. She was unconscious. Probably a concussion. She ran her hands quickly and lightly over Ami's body, checking for any major broken bones. There were none. But she was showing no signs of waking up anytime soon. "Everybody!" she called out. "Ami's hurt, we have to get her out of here!" "Where are the others?" Venus asked, running over towards them. "I saw them running ahead," Endymion said. "They might have been picked up by that tornado." "God, look at this," Jupiter said. "You can see some them lying around. They dropped that thing down on their own people too." "There might be some live ones coming soon," Venus said. Her expression was full of worry and uncertainty. "Damn, I wish I knew where Saturn was, Jeneth said she's the one we need to get to the Palace. Maybe that's where we should try and take Ami." "It may be closer than trying to go back," Endymion said. He looked at Mars, inviting her opinion. Just then a nuke went off in front of the Palace. For a moment Mars really thought that the Order had decided to call it a loss and end the game with one swift stroke. She expected to see the flesh being seared off her friends by the light of the atomic fire. But it didn't happen. She shielded her eyes against the light, not daring to look right into it. When it started to die out and she did dare look, she saw a dome of dazzling silver expanding in all directions. It rose up into the air, obscuring much of the Palace. Just when Mars thought surely it would consume them as well, it slowly faded away, leaving nothing but an afterimage behind. She blinked, trying to clear her vision. Now all she could see in front of the Palace was a circle of blackened, charred earth. There weren't very many of the Ancients in evidence. "What the hell was that?" Jupiter asked. "The Dead Scream," Mars said. She had just accepted it in her own mind, even though her instinct had been telling her that all along. The look she exchanged with Endymion said it all. Pluto must have immolated herself. "She must have done that to clear a path for Saturn," Venus said. "I think we have to trust them to take care of that. Let's get Ami out of here." Mars suspected Venus didn't understand that Pluto had just gone down in a blaze of glory. They could let it pass for now. "We'll have to carry her." Jupiter walked over to her. Mars was about to get Mercury into a sitting position when suddenly white hot pain exploded behind her eyes. For the split second that her eyes stayed focused she saw the same pain reflected in Jupiter's face. Mars could not even scream, she just made a strangled gurgling sound. The pain was all too familiar. A tiny part of her mind that was still working coherently was telling her that it couldn't be *that* one. She was locked up far away, a doped-up snivelling wreck. By a supreme act of will, Mars forced her body to obey, forced her eyes to focus, seeking out their attacker. A shrivelled up dwarf of a woman flanked by two peasants floated down out of the sky. They settled onto the ground nearby. The old woman's eyes were glowing. "Just stop struggling girl," she said in her grating voice. "The pain will go away." Mars wanted so much to obey, to just let go and slip into oblivion. But she absolutely would not. She forced herself to look left and right. Venus, Jupiter and Endymion were all lying on the ground, writhing and quivering. They were also resisting, but it was all they could do just to stay conscious. She was on her own. "Be reasonable," the old woman said. "I don't want to kill you. I'd much rather have you working for me. Just like your Princess is." Mars rasped the words out between clenched teeth. "She ... will ... never ... obey ... you!" "She already is, girl. She's making my new home for me. And when she's done that, she's going to come down here and kneel at my feet and ask me what else I'd like her to do for me." Rei tossed away the reins of her anger, her hatred, letting them go free to surge through her mind like a firestorm. It washed over the pain, consuming it, making it utterly irrelevant, making everything irrelevant, everything except the thing in front of her that had to be destroyed. The raging fire unleashed something new, something she had never seen before. She just let it take over, let it happen of its own accord. Without even thinking she was on her feet again. She threw one arm up over her head and thrust the other out front, her open hand sighted just under the old crone's face. She filled her lungs and shouted. "MARS HELLFIRE CONFLAGRATION!" The old crone became the heads of a blazing comet, its fiery tail shooting out behind her, charring the ground under it. Her barrier held for just a second. When it collapsed, there was just time for a look of astonishment to form on her gnarly face. Then she was burning, her ashes flying behind her. In another second she was just a blackened skeleton standing in the maelstrom. In another second she was nothing at all. Mars barely noticed that the pain was gone. She lowered her arms to her side and stared down the two men. They looked as if their whole world had just collapsed. They stood transfixed, waiting for her to do the same to them. "We're leaving. If any of you follow, we'll kill you. Now get out of my sight." They backed away, as if afraid she would shoot them in the back. By the time they had the nerve to turn around, they were starting to run. That was good. Mars wasn't sure how much longer she could have stayed on her feet. She fell to her knees, her head reeling. She looked back at her friends. They were all kneeling on the ground, still feeling the effects of the torture they had endured. They looked to be in little better shape than her. "We ... we should get moving." "Was that the Matriarch?" Venus asked weakly. "I sure as hell hope so." In due course they all got to their feet. It would probably be a little while before any of them was in condition to carry Ami. "That was a new attack," Venus said. "Yeah." "Do you think we all have new attacks now? Because we're near the Palace?" "I doubt it," Mars said. She was still trying to come to terms with it, wasn't sure whether she could explain. "It shouldn't have happened. I ... cheated." Venus looked puzzled. Mars tried to find the words, but suddenly there was a popping sound behind her. She whirled to see a bunch of the punks standing more or less in a line. No two of them had their hair dyed the same colour. A tall man with purple spiked hair raised his hand. "Chill. We come in peace." "What do you want?" Venus asked. Her voice was cold, but she was trying not to sound threatening. Good. They were in no condition to fight now. Stall for time. "Simple. We want to switch sides. Us and about a hundred others." They were lying. Mars hoped Venus knew that. "Just like that?" Venus asked. "We had to follow the Matriarch, but now she's dead. She didn't want to share the Palace." "We're not trying to take the Palace," Venus said. "We're trying to shut it down, to stop it from even existing." The man nodded towards the glowing Palace towering over them. "Looks like you're a bit late." "No, it's still not finished growing. We can still stop it. If we don't it could mean the end of the world." "That's cool," the man said. "We can feel the power of the Palace, even if the world ends it'll still be there. That's all we need." "No," Venus said. "Whatever the Palace is doing to the world, it has to be stopped. Even if we have to destroy it." The man shook his head. "No can do. We'll share, but half of nothing is still nothing." "Then I'd advise you to just step aside and let us do our work," Venus said. He sighed. "Okay, you can't say I didn't try to be reasonable." He raised his hand and his eyes started to glow. There was a light swishing sound barely audible over the constant thunder, and the man's body jerked. Three roses were embedded in his chest. It all happened at once. Jupiter's Oak Evolution and Venus' Love and Beauty shock shot out at the Ancients. Most of them had PK barriers up, they just went staggering back. The others were thrown through the air, crashing back to the ground, no longer moving. Mars whirled around, taking advantage of their confusion to make sure they didn't have other allies coming from other directions. A man shimmered into existence behind Jupiter. He had the same wild look in his eyes as the man who had put her into her coma. Exactly the same. Could have been his brother. She shouted a warning even though she knew it would be too late. But suddenly the man went slack-jawed, staring at the rose embedded in his hand. Jupiter jumped away from him and spun to face him, heeding Mars' warning before it had even registered, acting on pure instinct. Endymion flashed the man a mirthless grin. "Not this time." He snapped his fingers and the rose exploded. The man went down to the ground, screaming and writing in pain, holding the stump of the arm that ended just below the elbow. No longer a threat, he was promptly ignored by everybody. Mars turned and fired. barely conscious of the target she had selected for the Fire Soul. The Ancient punks had recovered from the initial assault, this one barely flinched at the new attack. He shot a blazing white kinetite that Mars was barely able to avoid. She hadn't fully recovered from the torture yet, she was slow and clumsy. Before she could even get off another shot she had to throw up her arms and absorb the impact of an unavoidable plasma bolt. She staggered back, smelling burnt hair, feeling the burns on her face. She nearly fainted from the pain. The Ancients were holding their position, firing off attacks more or less at random. Jupiter and Venus were closer now, probably having hoped to close and engage hand to hand. But the Ancients weren't making the mistake of letting them do that. Venus took a hit and went down. Endymion was already on the ground, the front of his armour charred and dented. He was trying to get up, but he probably wouldn't get the chance. The four parallel beams of light cut through the Ancients, annihilating two of them instantly. Nobody even heard the hummer approach over the thunder, it was already on them. It didn't even slow down, mowing down the rest of them by the simple expedient of running them over. It seemed their barriers weren't much good against blunt objects. The hummer turned, and the man at the quad guns swung them around. He played them across the fallen punks. Both the dead and the ones who showed some signs of life were cut to pieces. The hummer came to a stop in front of them. Smith grinned from his position at the wheel. "Hope you appreciate this, I'm going to catch hell for disobeying orders." Mars staggered up to the front of the vehicle, leaned against it. "We've got casualties." "So I see. We don't have much room, but dump them in back, my partner will try not to step on them. I'll give you a hand." Jupiter had already gone to pick up Mercury. She carried the still unconscious Senshi over to the hummer. Venus and Endymion were back on their feet, but like her they were in no condition to walk very far. Endymion and Jupiter joined Smith on the front bench seat, and Mars and Venus sat down beside Ami on the rear deck. Smith already had the hummer moving. He steered them away from the Palace. They moved from the area hit by the cyclone into the area hit by that weird napalm attack, which was not much of an improvement. "Hope we're not in your way," Venus said to the man still standing with his mounted guns at the ready. "We're not expecting much trouble," he said. It was a tall caucasian man with close-cropped blond hair. "Most of them are sticking a lot closer to the Palace now." Mars felt she should know that voice. Venus looked as if she had the same feeling. "Thanks for coming to get us," Venus said. He took off his dark glasses and smiled. "My pleasure, Minako." They both gasped. "Lafarge-san!" Venus exclaimed. "It's been a while hasn't it?" He put his shades back on and resumed scanning their surroundings. "Well I'll be damned," Smith said. "He said he was a friend of yours, I didn't know whether to believe him." "Lafarge-shan, I didn't get a New Years card from you this year," Venus said. Mars wanted to smack her and ask her what the hell that had to do with anything. He chuckled. "Company policy. Burning bridges and all that." "So you joined the Order last year?" "I was a subject of their investigation," Lafarge said. "We got to talking and they offered me a job." She pointed at the mounted plasma rifles. "I suppose they owe these toys to you." "I helped a bit." "You look like hell," Venus said. It was true, it looked like his jacket had actually caught fire at some point. "We had some fun getting here." "You must ruin a lot of good suits this way." "You have no idea." Suddenly he was in motion, swinging his guns around to their right. Mars looked in that direction. A jeep was speeding towards them along a road that intersected theirs. "Hold your fire!" Smith bellowed. Both vehicles slowed as they approached. Venus shouted out just before Mars recognized them. "Uranus, Neptune!" Uranus pulled the jeep smoothly alongside the hummer, and they continued down the same road side by side, at just a slightly slower pace. "We got Saturn into the palace," Neptune shouted. "We got cut off from her, so we had to get out." "Won't the Ancients follow her in?" Venus asked. "She just passed through the gate like it was air," Uranus said. She grinned. "I saw a couple of them try the same thing, they just bounced off the door." "What about Pluto?" Venus asked. "We lost her," Neptune said. Venus didn't ask her to elaborate on that cryptic comment. If she knew what it really meant, she showed no sign. "We've seen a few of them lurking about," Uranus said. "Since we picked up the wheels we've pretty much outrun them. But you'd better keep your eyes opened." "Right," Lafarge said. He had gone back to scanning the countryside. Mars looked back at the Palace slowly receding behind them. She closed her eyes. *Please bring her back to us, Hotaru-chan. Bring her back to me.* ***** Saturn wiped the tears from her eyes as she ran down the brightly glowing corridor. There's no time for that, she thought. Pluto did what needed to be done and that's that. She got me in here, now I have to do my part. When she had realized what Pluto had done, she hadn't hesitated even for a second. She had run like the wind, leaving her two sisters far behind. Her Silence Glaive had cut through what few of the Ancients still had the presence of mind to try and impede her. She hadn't even slowed down at the door, leaping right over the line of peasants who stood before it, trusting that it would admit her entrance as it had the Princess. Now she was running through the inside of a lightbulb. Or that was how it felt. The floor and walls were solid enough, but it looked like a realm of pure light, of energy with no substance. She hadn't expected it to be so *big*. It wasn't a palace, it was a city turned in on itself. There was no point even calling out to the Princess, Saturn would just have to make a guess where she would be and go there. Where would I go, Saturn thought. Where would I want to be while my Palace grew around me? I'd want to be on top. She made her way to the centre of the Palace, looking for the thing that Setsuna had described to her. She found it, an opening in a corridor wall that led straight into a vertical shaft. Everything was white on white, if she hadn't been looking carefully she might have stepped over the sheer drop expecting there to be a floor. What gave it away was a pulsing of the light in the shaft beyond the opening. If she looked carefully it seemed that the pulses of light were moving upward, the way Setsuna had described. She stuck her arm through the opening into the shaft. It suddenly felt weightless, then it felt like it wanted to drift upwards. *Up elevator.* She paused just long enough to phase the Silence Glaive back into its pocket dimension before stepping out over the edge. She floated for just a second then began rising up the shaft. She had no idea what she would have done had this thing not been working. There were supposed to be ramps going up as well, but that would have taken forever. The Palace was supposed to be at least a kilometre high, and from the way it looked it was more than halfway there already. She looked up, could see no end in sight. Hopefully this would take her at least most of the way there. At this rate, it would take a few minutes. Having no task to focus on for the moment, Saturn's thoughts drifted yet again to that terrible moment. She hadn't realized it until after the battered Silence Wall had finally collapsed, allowing the last aftershocks of the cataclysmic explosion to buffet them. She had turned around to check up on her sisters and Pluto was missing. The looks on Uranus' and Neptune's faces had told her instantly what had happened. Saturn closed her eyes and let out a whimper. *Oh Setsuna-mama ...* She dried her tears again, watching the line of openings in the shaft drift by. The part of the shaft she was now approaching looked different. She reached it and suddenly she seemed to be flying through the air. The walls were transparent, barely visible. In fact this whole section of the Palace was transparent. She was looking out over what looked like a garden stretching from one end of the vast central spire to the other. The bright ceiling above seemed to be the bottom of a great edifice floating in the air above her. It was like the spire above her had split away from the palace and floated over it, supported by nothing more substantial than silvery moonbeams. She reached out and tapped the glassy wall passing by. It was still solid. So the walls of the spire continued unbroken, here they just happened to be transparent. She looked down at the garden, it was the only thing she had seen here that was not just blinding white crystal. She would swear she could see the trees there growing before her eyes, as if the energy coursing through the Palace were goading them to explosive growth. She had started rising from near the centre of the Palace, but now she was rising along the wall of the slim central spire that rose from the massive body of the Palace below. Outside the vast windows there was utter blackness, at least to her dazzled eyes, the Palace might as well have been floating in space. She approached the white, crystalline ceiling above and passed through it, the walls of the shaft becoming translucent glowing white again. After another minute she could see the top of the shaft above her. Her ascent slowed. She came to a stop by another entrance in the shaft wall, just below its cap. She reached for it, which seemed to be the proper signal. She felt herself being pushed towards the entrance. She sank down to the floor and her weight gradually returned. She was standing on yet another open space, much like the last one, with almost invisible glass walls supporting a glowing white ceiling far above. This one was not as wide as the lower one, but it was higher. It had to be, to accommodate the tower that occupied most of the floor. It was a vast cone, with a ramp spiralling up to the top of it far above. It reached more than halfway to the ceiling. Scale was hard to judge, but it had to be a hundred meters high at least. The ceiling flickered and pulsated. That must be near the tip of the spire, she thought, the origin of the beam of light that was stabbing the heavens. This is where I would be, she thought. She went at a dead run towards the base of the spiral ramp. She saw no sign of an entrance, so that must be the only way up. She raced up the ramp. Where the floor had been smooth, the ramp was roughened slightly for traction. Which was a good thing, since it was quite steep. She raced up the side of the white tower. There was no sound but her footfalls, her laboured breathing and the echoes of the thunder that raged outside. She came to the top of the ramp and stood there, panting. The top of the tower was a vast, featureless round floor. Her breath caught as she saw the figure standing in the middle of the tower's apex. Neo-Queen Serenity. She was faced to the side and slightly away from Saturn. She just stood with hands folded before her. The flowing white dress she wore left her arms and shoulders bare, spilled out onto the floor around her. The great lavender ribbon at her back was suggestive of butterfly wings. It was just as the others had described. At another time she would have just marvelled at how beautiful Usagi looked. Right now, the sight left her utterly cold. She looked like a great and terrible goddess, calmly watching the Armageddon she had unleashed. Saturn walked over to her. Somehow, running just did not seem appropriate here. As Saturn approached closer, Serenity turned her head. She smiled. "Saturn. Welcome." "My Queen ..." she bowed low. Serenity turned back to staring out into the blackness that surrounded them beyond the glass walls. "Isn't it beautiful?" Saturn was confused. "I ... I see nothing, My Queen." She felt like she was walking on eggshells, she knew that she was falling back on formality as a defense mechanism. "I can feel it growing, like it's a part of me. I can see every part of it. I even felt you coming up here to see me. That was very nice of you." Saturn walked around so she was more in front of Serenity, but still a bit to the side. Serenity just stood there with a pleasant but neutral expression, ignoring her for the moment. Saturn didn't know quite how to approach this. She knew she had to be careful. "Serenity ... why is it suddenly so dark? What does it mean?" Serenity looked at her and smiled again. "Don't worry, you'll understand. The Palace will be complete soon. Then you'll understand everything." She was staring into space again. Saturn took a tentative step forward. "Serenity, we were all worried about you." She reached out to Usagi. "We thought you were-" "Stop." Saturn shrank back under that stern, cold stare. "I know you want to stop me from making the Palace complete. You're afraid of it. But when it's done, you'll understand that there's nothing to be afraid of. I'll take care of you all, like I always have." Saturn felt despair settle over her like a shroud. *She knows. It's hopeless. She won't let me do it.* She tried to stay calm, but it was no good. All she could think of was the blackness engulfing the world, the Null Field that even Setsuna seemed to fear bringing everything to an end. And now there was nothing she could do about it. Then the inspiration hit her. This is still Usagi. It was half genuine, half calculated. She started sobbing. "Serenity, I'm scared. I'm sorry, but I'm scared." She stood rigidly, as if desperately trying to show some dignity. But she gave full vent to her fear and frustration, sobbing loudly, letting the tears flow unchecked. Serenity's expression softened. "Oh, my poor little girl. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you." "I ..." Saturn's voice broke. She started again. "I'm scared of the dark," she whimpered. She turned her head away as if in shame. "Hotaru-chan ..." Serenity walked up to her, embraced her gently. "Don't cry. Everything is going to be fine." Saturn returned her embrace, nestling against Serenity's breast. Her hands went up Serenity's back, rested across the back of her neck. Gently, discretely, she probed. She felt it immediately, the disruption the Ancient girl had set up in Usagi's head. She applied her power to it. The unnatural patterns of energy were starting to break up. It would just take a few moments. There was a flash of light between them and Saturn went sailing through the air. She landed hard on her back. She lay there, stunned, unable to move. Every inch of her body was tingling. "That was very naughty." Serenity came into her field of view. Her face looked terrifying, twisted with anger and underlit by the glowing Ginzuishou she held at her breast. "I'll have to make sure you can never do that again." She held the crystal out over Saturn's prone body, and it burned brightly. *Setsuna-mama .. we'll be together again.* She smiled. She had her voice back now, she wanted to leave at least one last message for her Princess. "It's not your fault, Usagi-onesama. I forgive you." The crystal's light wavered. Then it disappeared, and Serenity lowered her arms. She looked as if she had been struck by lightning. Her knees gave out, and she slumped to the floor. "Serenity!" Saturn managed to lever herself up off the floor. She was getting some feeing back in her limbs. "Are you okay?" Serenity looked at her, still appearing thunderstruck. "Hotaru-chan ... what have I done?" "They were hypnotizing you," Saturn said, explaining in the quickest, easiest way she could. "I think I just broke the spell. Serenity, will you let me examine you again? I want to make sure they haven't done anything else to you." She nodded. Saturn just crawled the short distance over to her and knelt before her. She put her hands on each side of Serenity's face and reached out with her healing touch. The disruption was gone. Serenity had broken the rest of it by her own will. "You'll be okay," she announced. "Saturn, how did you find me?" Serenity asked. "It's a long story," Saturn said. "Serenity, you've got to stop the Palace from growing any more. This darkness is spreading all over the world." "The darkness? What is it?" It would take too long to explain about Daniel. "Setsuna called it a Null Field. She said we have to stop it." Serenity looked out into the darkness that surrounded them on all sides. She looked back at Saturn and shook her head. "I don't know how," she whispered. Saturn fought down her panic. "How did you start it?" "I didn't do anything. I brought out the Ginzuishou and it just started happening. Then I didn't need to do anything. I just found this place and stood here." "Maybe we have to break something," Saturn said. She pointed overhead. "That's where its taking in its energy. Maybe the Ginzuishou can stop it." Serenity nodded. "You're right, I have to try." She got to her feet. "Saturn, this could be very dangerous. You should leave." She shook her head. "No. Please let me stay with you." Serenity smiled. "Saturn ... thank you." She cupped her hands and the Ginzuishou appeared again. She knit her brow and it glowed more brightly. Saturn wondered what she planned on trying. Just a simple blast of energy at the spire above them? A ghostly image appeared before them. The glow of the Ginzuishou dimmed as Serenity lost her concentration on it. "Mother ..." she whispered. The elder Queen Serenity was almost a twin of the younger. Only her white robes were different, and the hair in odango and long pigtails was platinum. She did not smile. In her face Saturn saw what she could only describe as shame. "It's too late, my daughter. You can't stop it." The Ginzuishou faded away again, and Usagi's arms fell to her sides. "What do you mean? Mother, what's happening?" "Your mind was closed to me," Queen Serenity continued. "As soon as I appeared, you were closed to me. Until now." She turned to Saturn. "I see that Saturn has appeared again. But this was no destiny, it was my own folly. I made this terrible thing and I brought it to the Earth." "This thing? You mean the Seed Crystal?" "Yes. It was to be a gift to the Golden Kingdom, a palace for you and Endymion to rule from after your marriage. But then the Dark Kingdom came. Out of fear, I allowed your gift to be made into a weapon. A trap for the Dark Kingdom, should they overrun the Earth and thereby obtain the Seed Crystal. If used, It would drain the Earth of the energy that gave the demons their power. It would make the planet uninhabitable, and provide a sanctuary only for the few who remained uncorrupted." "No ..." Usagi began shaking. "No." Queen Serenity bowed her head. "I am ashamed to even show my face to you. I planted the seed of your world's destruction with my own hand. "What ..." Usagi's voice broke. She swallowed. "What's going to happen?" "The sun will be blotted out. The world will freeze. The Null Field will keep it frozen for centuries." "God ..." Usagi veered to one side. Saturn barely caught her before she could fall. "What have I done?" "You have done nothing," Queen Serenity said, still unable to meet her gaze. "Nothing but fall into the trap I set with my own hands. I set myself up as judge of an entire world, deciding it was better destroyed than living under the rule of my enemy. And then I destroyed both worlds, leaving this horror behind. Like a negligently discarded toy, to be found by unsuspecting passersby. What unimaginable arrogance." "Oh Mother ..." Usagi was standing on her own now, so Saturn stepped away from her. "This palace, it's a gift? To Endymion and me?" Queen Serenity nodded. "I even fused a piece of my own soul to it, so that I could always be with you. But I defiled it utterly, turned it into something monstrous, a weapon forged in fear." Usagi seemed hardly to hear her. She was actually smiling. "You accepted Endymion. You accepted that I loved him." Queen Serenity looked bewildered. "Of course, child. I always did. The rest was just obligatory posturing. I was overjoyed at the love you found. I had to wait for political reasons only. I had prayed that once I was free to explain that, you could forgive me." "Mother, I would have forgiven you anything." Queen Serenity looked even more shocked. Slowly, a joyous smile formed on her lips. "Forgiveness is the hardest thing in the world. But you always gave it so freely. That is why you would have been such a splendid queen, better than I ever could have been. And now I've taken that chance from you, taken your whole world from you." Usagi shook her head. "No, you haven't. We'll get by, you'll see. I've got lots of wonderful friends helping me, we'll find a way to fix things." "My dear daughter, I haven't much time. My defilement of the Palace is such that once it is complete my soul will fade from this world utterly. That will be just a matter of minutes now, I can feel it. But before I go, there is one last gift I wish to leave with you, a gift of knowledge. I can show you things that may help you in the terrible days ahead." Usagi nodded. "What do I need to do?" Queen Serenity's image lost its transparency. She spread out her arms. "Will you embrace your mother one last time?" The elder and younger Queen Serenity wrapped each other in a loving embrace. A silver penumbra started to dance around them. Saturn turned and walked to the edge of the tower roof. She stood there, watching the blackness. She didn't understanding what was happening behind her, all she knew was that it was the last meeting of mother and daughter. It should be a private moment. ***** Ami opened her eyes. Sailor Mars' face came into focus. The raven- haired Senshi smiled down at her. "How are you feeling?" "You've been burned." "Jeneth has critical patients to deal with right now. She'll get around to me." Ami sat up from the cot she had been lying on. They were in some sort of small warehouse that was half empty. Some of the free space had been taken up with cots and tables and first aid supplies. Some of the other cots were occupied by resting or sleeping men, most with bandages of one sort or another. Part of a makeshift field hospital. "How much do you remember?" Mars said. "We were running through my fog cover. Then it felt like there was a tornado. Something hit me on the head." "Well I guess Jeneth was right, you didn't get hit badly enough to mess up your memory." "How long have I been out?" "We brought you here just a few minutes ago." "What happened?" "They hit us with some sort of conjured cyclone. We had to fight our way out. But we managed to get Saturn inside the Palace." "And the others?" Mars took her hand. "Mercury, Pluto is missing. We're not sure what happened to her." Ami frowned. "Mercury, there's something you're not telling me." Mars sighed. "She used the Dead Scream to clear a path for Saturn. Only this time it was almost like an atomic bomb. We ... we think she's gone." "Oh God." Mercury buried her face in her hands. She felt Mars put a comforting hand on her shoulder. Thank goodness I told her, Ami thought. Thank goodness I told her that I forgive her. "Is everybody else okay?" "Smith told me that Takada was killed." "Oh no. He was trying to protect us." "Yes, and he did a good job. He got most of his men back here alive, too. It was a miracle." "Is there any change in the Palace?" "No. It's still getting bigger. It's hard to tell, but I think it's at least nearly as big as the one we saw in Crystal Tokyo. And Saori tells me that the darkness is spreading even faster now. It's over most of the globe. Everywhere except a hole over the South Atlantic, and that's getting smaller." Ami felt mind-numbing dread. "Is it ... doing anything?" "All she would say is it seems to be messing up satellite communications and a lot of radio frequencies. It's about twenty kilometres in the air. As far as we can see, it's just blocking light and radio waves." Ami swung her legs around and sat up on the cot. "We need to get into the Palace and find out what's going on." "Yeah, I know. Venus was on the phone with their boss from the head office, he's on his way here to take direct command of things. He's agreed to launch a full scale assault as soon as they can. I've seen them gearing up for it, they'll be moving out in just a few minutes." "We should go out with them." She stood up. "You feeling okay?" "Yes, I'm fine." It was even the truth. Sometimes she really appreciated the quick healing that a Sailor Senshi could do. They walked out of the little warehouse. Ami recognized it as the same place they had gathered for their first assault on the Palace. There were a lot more vehicles now. Some of the bigger trucks had rows of men in battle fatigues in the back. They held bigger versions of the plasma rifles that seemed to be attached to elaborate shoulder harnesses. There were also a couple of armoured vehicles, brandishing three sets of the mounted quad plasma rifles each. All the engines were idling, it looked like everybody was getting ready to move out. "Mercury!" Ami looked over to see Venus waving at her. She was at the wheel of a hummer. Mercury and Mars trotted over. Endymion was sitting beside her, and Jupiter was standing beside the car. Neptune and Uranus were crouched down on the open back platform. Venus looked very pleased with herself. "Hey girl, glad to see you up and about. Look at what they've lent us! They've got cars coming out of their ears now." Mercury gauged Venus' mood, chose her words carefully. "Has there been any more word about Pluto?" Venus dismissed her concern with a wave. "Don't worry, she'll turn up. She always does. Hop in the back. They tell me we're going to be rear echelon so we don't even have to do anything. We just follow that command car over there." Mars stepped up to Venus, looked her in the eye. "Listen to me very closely. You speak for the Princess in her absence and I obey you in all matters, but for the sake of humanity you are not repeat *not* driving. Move over." Venus sighed. "I figured you'd say that." She slid over without any fuss. Mars looked imploringly up at Uranus. The short-haired Senshi smiled in understanding. She hopped down from the back and climbed in behind the wheel. Mars, Mercury and Jupiter climbed into the back and sat down on the floor. "So how's the arm?" Jupiter asked Neptune. Neptune flexed her arm and fingers. "Jeneth did enough that I can use it again." Vehicles started moving out. Uranus pulled in behind their designated lead, and they headed down the same road again. Rei hadn't been kidding, the Palace was visibly larger now. Ami looked to left and right. She could glimpse more columns of vehicles moving down parallel roads. Suddenly there were sounds of helicopters behind them. Ami looked behind them just on time to follow a pair of small twin tandem rotor helicopters speed overhead towards the Palace. They brandished oversized plasma rifles. She thought she could glimpse a shimmering around them, like a spherical shield. There were more of them moving in on the left and right as far as she could see, presumably from all directions. Ami shivered. This was going to be a bloodbath to dwarf the little surgical strike they had just come back from. Within minutes the sky and the ground around the Palace was smothered in a hail of crisscrossing fire lines. From this distance it looked like a spectacular laser light show. Ami felt sick, imagining the carnage taking place there. She hoped that Usagi wasn't seeing this. It was like somebody flipping a switch. The lightning just stopped and the constant rumbling was just as abruptly cut off, now very conspicuous by its absence. Nobody said anything. After a while Ami remembered to breathe again. Her hand hurt from the deathgrip she had been putting on the handhold at her side. She had bent it a bit. She had been expecting something more to happen, but the Palace just went on shining. Its steady, silvery glow was no longer challenged by the shimmering column of light that had been eclipsing it. The command car in front of them slowed and stopped, and Uranus did likewise. That was when Ami noticed that the firefight far ahead seemed to be quickly dying down. "There are orders to cease fire," Endymion said. That was when Ami noticed that he was wearing a headset. "She did it," Jupiter said. "Saturn must have found the Princess, got her to make it stop." Ami didn't say anything, but she suspected it had stopped of its own accord. The Palace looked just as she had remembered it in the future, and by now the Null Field covered the earth. Whatever its purpose, it was complete. "The Ancients are ..." Endymion hesitated. "I'm not sure if I'm hearing this right, but it sounds like they've lost their ESPer powers. They're surrendering in droves." "We should get to the Palace," Uranus said. "Find out what happened." "Wait a minute." Endymion sounded anxious this time. Everybody tensed up. He was listening intently to something on the headset. "Uranus, get us moving forward right now." Ami barely had time to grab onto the handhold again as Uranus tromped on the accelerator and swerved around the command car. She had them roaring along at highway speeds in no time. "Endymion, what's wrong?" Venus asked. "They've found Pluto. She's not in good shape." Ami's heart missed a beat. "Where?" Uranus asked. "Sounds like about half a kilometre from the gate. Just a second." He flipped a switch on the dash and spoke softly into the mike of his headset. "They're flying Jeneth in by helicopter right now." "I think I see it," Jupiter said, looking behind them. "Why don't they get K'Theelm to fly her?" Venus asked. "He and Thetan went in with the attack choppers," Endymion said. "The chopper was available, they weren't." One of the sleek black helicopters went flying past them to their right. Were it not for its running lights it would have been all but invisible. Uranus zeroed in on where it went down, driving all the more recklessly now. In a minute they came to a halt near the landed helicopter. Its rotors were still slowly turning. They were in the area hit by the cyclone, there was debris everywhere. "I see Jeneth," Neptune said, pointing. They all jumped out and ran over. Without even being prompted they all stepped aside and held back for Mercury and Mars to pass through. Mercury already had her visor activated. Pluto was lying on the ground. Her Sailor Senshi outfit was torn up, her skin burned and lacerated. Jeneth had one hand over her head, another over her heart. A couple of the men with the enormous plasma rifles stood off to one side. Presumably the ones who found her. Ami's visor told her why there had been no conventional treatment applied. Physically she was in fair shape, just a lot of small injuries that would really hurt but wouldn't endanger her. But her life force was flickering like a candle in the wind. Whatever Jeneth was doing was probably all that was keeping it stable. Mars brought a hand down near Pluto's forehead, hesitated. Jeneth nodded. Mars laid her fingertips softly on Pluto's brow. After a few seconds she withdrew her hand and looked back up at the assembled Senshi. She spoke softly, as if trying not to disturb Jeneth's work. "I don't think she's in any real danger anymore. But whatever happened to her ... it must have hurt worse than any pain the ESPers inflicted on us. I don't know what state she might be in when she wakes." Endymion, Venus and Jupiter all looked as if some memory was making them almost physically ill. There must be some part of their battle with the Ancients that they had glossed over. "I think she's coming around," Jeneth said. She withdrew her hands. Pluto's eyes fluttered, stayed about half open. Ami got up from her crouched position and stepped aside, looking at Uranus. She nodded, and she and Neptune moved in to kneel down beside their sister. Jeneth also moved aside. "Setsuna," Neptune said softly, taking her hand. "Can you hear me?" Pluto smiled. "Hello Neptune," she said weakly. "Uranus. I'm happy to see you made it." "We didn't know what had happened to you," Uranus said, a roundabout way of saying she thought Pluto had been killed. "We thought you'd been caught in your own trap, baka," Neptune said. "That's what would have happened," Pluto said, still speaking softly and slowly, not even lifting her head up. "I should be dead. But Kaori saved me." Uranus and Neptune looked at each other. They were obviously thinking the same thing Ami was. Pluto's lips curled up in a little smile. "No, I'm not delirious. I heard her, in my mind. She was there. She said goodbye. Then she used her specialty. She awakened my latent power. Even from that distance, from across that field, she was able to give me that sort of power." "What power?" Neptune asked. "To teleport myself." "Well I'll be damned ..." Jupiter said. "I think I did a poor job," Pluto said. She was gradually starting to sound a bit better. "It felt like my body went one way and my spirit went another." "That's not a bad way to describe it," Jeneth said. "On my world I've treated victims of very rough teleports. You were lucky, your spirit was nearly lost in the void. If I had been any later, it would have been." Now that Pluto seemed to be fully coherent, Ami decided she could raise a painful question. "Pluto, if Kaori could teleport then she probably escaped too. Would you like us to get the Order to look for her?" "No," Pluto said. "She couldn't have teleported while she was helping me. She would have had no time. She died with the rest. That was why she was saying goodbye." "Setsuna, I'm so sorry." Pluto nodded. She awkwardly sat up. She winced. Ami didn't bother asking her where it hurt. It look like the answer would be 'everywhere.' Pluto looked at Uranus. "Did Saturn get into the Palace?" "Yeah. It's stopped growing now, so I guess she did it." Pluto looked up at the Palace towering over them. Her face fell. "I'm sure she tried her best," she said softly. They all turned at the sound of running feet. It was one of the pilots from the helicopter. He stopped and addressed the group. "I thought you'd want to know, I just heard that the front door of the Palace is opening." "It must be the Princess!" Venus said. "Come on, let's go!" "We're practically there already," Uranus said, "It would be faster to just run." She inclined her head towards the Palace. "Go, we'll bring Pluto in the hummer." The Inner Senshi and Endymion all ran for the front gate. They passed by soldiers collecting, processing and taking away groups of dazed looking people. The ESPers ... or former ESPers from the looks of it. There were plenty of dead ones lying about as well. Ami tried to ignore the ones that were in pieces. In just a couple of minutes they were at the gate. There were vehicles parked around it, but they were all keeping a respectful distance. Either out of caution or simply under orders to let the Sailor Senshi deal with whatever was going on. They passed the line of vehicles and ran onto a vast plaza that had formed in front of the gate. It was of the same glowing crystal as the Palace itself. Ami marvelled how the surrounding ground just led straight onto the plaza as if it had been carefully laid there. The ground was not at all broken up, as if it had not just been displaced by the towering edifice. It was like the Palace had eaten up the earth as it grew, absorbing it into itself. They stopped just at the edge of the plaza. Two figures were walking towards them from the open doors. Saturn with her Glaive held across her chest. And ... "Neo-Queen Serenity," Venus whispered. She was exactly as Ami had remembered seeing her during the battle in the Dark Gate. Beautiful and regal, bearing herself like true royalty. It might have been a trick of the lighting, but she seemed to glow with the same power as the Palace itself. She was a goddess in mortal form. The effect was mitigated somewhat when her face broke into a wide grin. "Mako-chan!" she called out. She quickened her pace. It didn't look like she would really be able to run with that dress trailing behind her. Jupiter walked forward to greet her, and they joined in a close embrace. "Mako-chan, I knew you'd come back to us." "They told me you needed our help," Jupiter said. "Of course I had to come back." She embraced Endymion next. They kissed. "Usako, are you okay?" he asked. "Yes Mamo-chan, I'm fine." Her manner was very reserved, like they were meeting after just another busy day. Next in line was Mars. Ami frowned as she watched them hold each other. Somehow Mars looked like she felt awkward. "Rei-chan, I'm sorry," Serenity said. "I let myself fall into their trap. You must have been so worried." Mars nodded. "I'm so happy to see you, my Queen." Serenity's brows came down just incrementally, as if she were wondering about the same thing Ami was. Wondering why Mars looked like she was ashamed to show her face. Whatever her thoughts, she let it pass. She came to Venus next. Minako was already in tears. "Usagi-chan," she said, smiling and squeezing her tight. "Thank goodness you're okay." "You brought everybody to help me," Serenity said. "Thank you." Venus stepped back and bowed her head down. "Usagi, I ... I've done a poor job. People have died because if me again. We were trying to find you and-" Serenity put a finger just in front of Venus' lips. "You would never knowingly hurt the innocent. We both know that." Venus looked like the weight of the world had just been lifted from her shoulders. Serenity softly stroked her cheek. Then she moved over to give Ami a hug. Much of Ami's anxiety melted away as she held Serenity close. It felt like being held in mothers' arms. She could allow herself to believe that maybe, just maybe, Serenity could make things right again. Serenity stepped away slightly and looked into Ami's eyes. "Mercury, Saturn told me that Pluto's missing." Ami grinned. It was the first time in a very long while she had been able pass on genuinely good news. "We found her." She looked at poor Saturn, whose face reflected a battle between fear and hope. "She's fine. She'll be here soon." "I think I see them coming now," Jupiter said. They all looked to see the hummer with the three Outer Senshi bouncing across the rubble-strewn ground toward the line of vehicles around the front gate. Uranus drove between two of them and stopped at the edge of the plaza. Serenity walked over to Saturn, who was looking at her sisters as if she could not believe they were all still alive. Serenity bent and murmured in her ear, putting her hand to Saturn's back as if encouraging her along. She needed no further prompting. She dropped the posture of the stern guardian and the Glaive vanished. She took a tentative step forward, slowly increased her pace. By the time she got to them she was running. Pluto had just gotten out of her seat. Saturn flung out her arms and crashed into her, almost sending her back against the car. Jupiter made a sound like she was the one who had been hit. "That must have hurt." "I'll bet she didn't even notice," Venus said. They watched Saturn's reunion with her sisters from where they stood. Then the four of them walked over and Serenity greeted Uranus, Neptune and Pluto as she had the others. She was rather more mindful of Pluto's injuries than Saturn had been. "Serenity, can you tell us what the meaning of this darkness is?" Pluto asked. "Yes. But it's something our friends need to hear as well. We should call the refugees here, and Takada-san as well." It was Venus who broke the awkward silence. "Serenity, Takada-san was killed in the fight with the Ancients." Serenity looked saddened, but not shocked. "Oh no." She sighed, suddenly looking very weary. "That's very bad news. Is there somebody else leading the Order now?" "Takada's boss is on his way here," Venus said. "He's probably here by now. I'll go ask them to send him here." She ran over to what looked like a command car. To Ami's eyes she seemed very eager to leave their company. Ami looked sadly at her dear friend running away. *Oh Mina-P, how long do you intend to blame yourself?* "Serenity, this darkness covers the whole earth now," Neptune said. "Among other things it seems to have robbed the Ancients of their powers, at least now that the Palace is complete." "Yes, I know," Serenity said. "No magic save ours will work under this darkness. My mother explained it to me." Jupiter gasped. "You met Queen Serenity? Is she ...?" "She's gone now." She did not seem inclined to say more. Nobody pressed her for details. In short order Venus came trotting back. "He'll be here soon. And K'Theelm is bringing the others." She seemed to speak the next words with some reluctance. "Serenity, did Saturn tell you about what's been happening?" "Yes. The Matriarch took the Palace from the rogues and tried to take it for herself. It was very foolish of them, it would have gained them nothing." She looked around the assembled Senshi, and then into Endymion's face, as if trying to find something there. Then a smile of comprehension and sympathy appeared. "I'm sorry if I'm behaving strangely. Saturn told me I only spoke to my mother for a few minutes, but after she embraced me it seemed as if time stretched out, it seemed like we talked for a very long time. We did more than talk, she ... she gave me something. Almost like a piece of herself inside of me. I'm still trying to sort it all out. But please don't worry about me." She walked next to Endymion and they put their arms around each other. "The important things are clear to me. I know who I am and I know what I have to do. I'm Neo-Queen Serenity, and I have to do everything I can to help the people under my protection." Her expression softened, and she chuckled. "Oh dear, I've really overdone it. You all look like you want to go down on your knee." They all laughed, Ami included. One thing certainly hadn't changed. At the really important moments, she still knew exactly the right thing to say. Even Venus' spirits seemed to have lifted. But Mars' smile looked forced. "Looks like our friends have arrived," Uranus said. Ami saw K'Theelm flying Thetan and Jeneth towards them. They came down at the edge of the plaza and walked towards them. They all looked as if they were approaching a holy relic, like they wanted to prostrate themselves. But Serenity was having none of that. She walked up to Jeneth and embraced her. "Thank you for coming to help me. I'm glad to see you all well and safe." "Avatar," Jeneth said. "I can't tell you what a joy it is to see you." Serenity moved to approach the others, but Thetan raised his hand. "Your pardon if we keep our distance, Avatar, but we have the stench of battle upon us." "No more than the rest of us," Serenity said. But she respected their wish. "I'm sorry that you were brought into this senseless war. But it's over now, there will be no more fighting." It was spoken as a promise, not a command. "Jeneth," Saturn said. "I think I removed the disruption the ESPers left in Serenity, but I'd feel better if you'd have a look." Ami wanted to kick herself. "Serenity I'm sorry, I should have been checking on you myself as soon as I saw you." Serenity laughed, put up her hand. "Please, one doctor at a time." Jeneth went first, then Ami. They both gave her a clean bill of health. While she had her visor up, Ami noticed that Endymion's life force was weakened more than the others. Perhaps one of the ESPer attacks had hit him quite hard. They still hadn't told her about what had happened while she was out. It didn't look serious, but she made a mental note to ask about it when she got the chance. Their attention was drawn to a car pulling up beside the one Uranus had been driving. Ami recognized it as a Range Rover. Smith got out of the driver's seat, Daniel out of the front passenger seat, and Saori came out from the back seat. Smith held the door open for the fourth passenger. He was an elderly, stout caucasian man. He walked with a cane, though his limp was barely perceptible. The cut of his suit might have been stylish about a hundred years ago. The four of them walked towards the Senshi. Daniel smiled at Pluto. He looked pleased to see her, but not surprised. Either he had never been informed that she was missing, or had already been told that she had been found. They all stopped in front of Serenity. "My lady, how should I address you?" Smith asked. "I've taken on the name Serenity." "Serenity, please allow me to present the Director of the Hidden branch of the Order." The Director bowed. "Thank you for inviting me to your Palace, Serenity. Forgive me if I sound awkward, it has been some time since I have used a language spell." "I wish I could invite you inside," Serenity said. "But the Palace will be overcharged with energy for some time, it is inadvisable for any but myself, Endymion and the Sailor Senshi to enter." "I understand," he said. "Don't concern yourself about my standing, the walking stick is simply an eccentricity of mine, not a necessity. You can call me mister Brown. In these emergency conditions, I have been given command of all branches of the Order. Please consider us at your disposal." "Thank you," Serenity said. "I understand you are already acquainted with my associates, Saori and mister Smith." "Yes," Serenity said. She smiled. "And I believe I recognize your other companion as well. Cyrus, is it not?" Daniel looked truly astonished. "I'm called Daniel Churchland now, my Queen, but I was known by that name a very long time ago." "In the Moon Kingdom," Serenity said. "I've recently had some very old memories reawakened. Few of them are clear, but I recall your having been a good friend of Pluto's." "He still is," Pluto said. She walked closer to him and took his hand. "He is the one who warned us how dangerous the Null Field was. We tried to reach you and stop its spread as quickly as we could." "Pluto, please don't feel that you failed," Serenity implored. "Once it began, nothing could have stopped it, not even me. My mother explained it all to me. She made the Seed Crystal in the time of the Silver Millennium." She turned to mister Brown. "I'm sorry, I should explain about the Silver Millennium to you." "I was getting regular reports from mister Takada," the Director sad. "He summarized the story you told about the Moon Kingdom and the Silver Millennium. He was always very thorough, I imagine he passed on all that you told him." Serenity suddenly looked very sad. "I had always looked forward to the day when I could tell the world about my mother's lost kingdom, about the legacy I had inherited. I had always thought that would be the proudest day of my life. But now it is the blackest day in history." The look on Serenity's face made Ami want to cover her ears, to block out what she was going to say next. "The Seed Crystal was the Moon Kingdom's most terrible weapon. It is what you would call a doomsday weapon. The Null Field it created will blot out the sun for centuries. The world will freeze over. There is nothing we can do to prevent that." Ami felt herself shaking. Her body was demanding that she do something, cry, scream, anything to vent her horror. "No ..." somebody whimpered. It may or may not have been her. "Serenity," the Director said very calmly, "Are you telling me that all life on this world will soon perish?" "I am saying that in a matter of days or weeks, the earth will become uninhabitable." "Serenity," Saturn said. "Your mother said that the Palace was supposed to be a sanctuary." Her expression asked the question that she dare not speak. Serenity shook her head. "It was meant to be a temporary shelter only. To protect people until they could be taken back to the Moon Kingdom. But the Kingdom is no more, and I don't have the knowledge to make it habitable again. Right now the Palace glows with the energy it has collected, but in time that will fade. After that, it will be able to sustain a handful of people at best." "There must be something we can do!" Jupiter pleaded. She looked ready to fly into a rage. Makoto had never dealt well with failure, large or small. Now they had failed their world utterly. "There is," Serenity said. She looked at Mercury. Ami took a step back. *No.* "I'm sorry Ami, but I know you could explain it better than I could." Nobody spoke, but they all were looking expectantly at her. All looking for some ray of hope. Pluto at least looked as if she knew what was coming. Ami lowered her gaze, knowing she would break down if she had to watch their hopes being dashed by her words. She detached herself utterly from what she was saying. It was not her voice, but that of a cool observer reporting the facts. "Some years ago I developed a technique to put living things into a state of suspended animation, using my powers as Sailor Mercury. I also developed a plan to use this technique on a large scale, using the combined power of Sailor Moon and the Sailor Senshi. I calculated we would be able to preserve several million people in the crystals I had developed. When Nomura's Cloud approached the solar system five years ago we thought that it might blot out the sun and freeze the earth. As it turned out it did not. But we had planned to put most of the population of Tokyo into suspended animation, to be revived by us centuries later. We chose Tokyo because I felt it was where we could save the most people. It has to be done at a certain ... certain ..." she put her hand to her mouth, waited for the nausea to pass. "Sorry ..." She felt somebody put an arm around her shoulders. She looked up to see Setsuna smiling down at her. "It's okay, Ami," she said very softly. She turned to the Director and addressed him in a clear voice. "The technique Mercury described is best performed when the temperature is well below freezing. It will be at least a few days before the Tokyo area cools to that temperature. And it is an area effect, so it will have to be done over a contiguous area of land. There is a certain population density at which the area effect can preserve the maximum number of people. For that and other reasons, Tokyo is the logical choice." "The Sailor Senshi will need to prepare for this," Serenity said. "The Palace is the best place for us to do that. They all need to heal from their battle scars, and just being within it for that amount of time will enhance our power." "Serenity," the Director said. "I understand that you are essentially immortal. But do you really expect to inhabit this Palace for several centuries?" Ami was awed by the speed with which he was analyzing the situation, and the poise with which he did it. There was no way to tell that just a few minutes ago he had been told that the world was coming to an end. "There is no other way," Serenity said. "We will do what we must." "I see." He looked down to the ground, scratched his chin. He looked back up. "Is there anything we can do to help you?" Ami had been counting. He had approved of the plan in six seconds. Serenity hesitated. "Director, I can't ask anyone to decide who will live and who will not. I will only say one thing. Every person you bring into Tokyo in the next few days will probably mean one more person at the edge of the city who will not be preserved. One more person who will die to give life to another." It was several seconds before he replied. "I understand. I expect that you don't need it, but nevertheless we will provide the Palace with what protection we can. And when the time comes, we will provide you with safe passage back to Tokyo should you need it." "Thank you." "Well then, I imagine we both have a great deal of planning to do. I will post guards at the door. They will have means of contacting me should we need to speak further. I would be grateful if one of you would check with them on a regular basis." "Of course." "I wish we could have met under better circumstances." He turned to face the refugees. "Thetan, K'Theelm and Jeneth, I presume. Takada had spoken very highly of you. My thanks for your help to us and to the Sailor Senshi. I expect you will be returning to your own world soon." Their alien faces were more difficult to read without their glamours, but their hesitation alone showed they were taken off guard by the statement. "I expect so," Thetan said at length. "I regret that I did not have the chance to speak with you further. Safe journey." "May the Spirits watch over you," Thetan said. The director turned to Daniel. "Mister Churchland, Takada spoke to me of your gift. I suspect it could prove useful in the things I must do over the next few days. If I give you my promise to bring you back to Tokyo at the appropriate time, would you agree to assist me?" Daniel exchanged a brief glance with Pluto. Both their expressions were difficult to read. He nodded. "Of course, I would be happy to serve in the Order again." The director looked just slightly puzzled. Daniel put his hand to his breast. "That life shall never perish," he intoned. Then he smiled. "I directed the construction of the Stonehenge ward." "Flavius?" "I was known by that name for a time, yes." The director smiled wistfully. "Under other circumstances, I would have as many thousands of questions for you as I would for our friends from another planet. Ah well." He turned to Serenity. "I doubt that we shall meet in person again. I leave our future in your hands." "Director ..." she sighed. Her neutral, detached expression dissolved into one of open gratitude. "Mister Brown, I can't tell you how your trust honours me. I'll do my best to be worthy of it." He smiled. "I believe our future is in good hands." He addressed his companions. "Come, it's time to say goodbye." The Director waited patiently while they all said their goodbyes to Smith, Saori and Daniel. It was almost surreal for Ami. It was just starting to dawn on her what was in store for the Sailor Senshi. They would not be seeing any of these people for centuries, if ever. When the former, current and newly inducted members of the Order took their leave, Venus approached her. "Ami-chan," she said in a voice low enough to be private. "You okay?" "Mina-P ..." she wasn't sure what she wanted to say. Venus smiled her knowing smile. She took Ami lightly by the shoulders and gave her a quick kiss. "Ami, it's thanks to you that we have something to hope for." She closed her eyes and came forward until their foreheads touched. "I know you can do it," she murmured. The feeling of dread eased down to a bearable level. "Thanks." Arm in arm, they turned to face the group again. Ami saw the three refugees approaching Serenity. "K'Theelm," Serenity said. "The Director was right, it's time for you all to go home." "We'd like to stay as long as we can," Thetan said. "In case there is some other service we can render." Serenity shook her head. She pointed straight up. "Look into the sky over our heads and tell me what you see." Ami also followed their gaze. "I see a hole in the field," K'Theelm said. Ami was just barely able to see it. A hole of dark blue against the utter blackness, with a few faint stars showing. "That will likely close soon," Serenity continued. "My mother told me that trying to fly through the Null Field could be very dangerous. You should leave as soon as you are able." "My symbiont is fully prepared," K'Theelm said. "There is nothing more to do. We can leave any time." "Then it's time for us to say goodbye," Serenity said. Jeneth stepped forward. She looked a bit uncomfortable. "Queen Serenity, before we leave could I ask for a brief private audience with your majesty and with Endymion? It is a ... personal matter." "Of course." The three of them went aside to talk. Ami approached K'Theelm and Thetan, Venus coming alongside her, still holding her hand. "K'Theelm, is there anything we can do to help your journey?" Ami asked. The dark-skinned engineer smiled. "We'll be fine. I'll just do a few short jumps to the edge of the Solar System to get my space legs back, as it were. Then it's just a matter of retracing our steps. We know exactly where we're going, so the trip back will be much easier." Ami smiled. The two of them had worked closely together. Like her, K'Theelm was very reticent and private, so it had taken a while for their friendship to start forming. Ami found herself regretting that. "I'll be praying that you find all your friends and family alive and well when you get home." "And my prayers will be with you all, Mercury," K'Theelm said. "Say hello to our fellow Avatars for us," Venus said. "We will tell them all about you," Thetan said. "We all owe our lives to you and your Queen. Our people will sing songs of you for a thousand years." "Mercury," K'Theelm said. "I don't know if it will help you, but I'd like to take readings of the Null Field from above as we are leaving, and transmit them to you." Ami nodded. "That's a good idea. We can use the link between your Symbiont and Jeneth's communicator, that could feed the data right into my computer." "You would have to leave an open data channel," K'Theelm said. "We should choose a protocol." "Say Thetan," Venus said. "Why don't we leave these two alone, I think they want to talk technobabble." They went to talk with the other Sailor Senshi, while Ami and K'Theelm immersed themselves in the world of facts and machines that they both found so comforting. They arranged for the data transfer to be able to happen automatically, going straight into Mercury's computer without her intervention. All K'Theelm had to do was stay above the hole, in line of sight to the Palace. She could examine the data later, for what it was worth. Ami noticed that Jeneth's private audience was over and they were returning from where they had been speaking. Ami thought she detected an air of tension about them, but it soon vanished behind the fond farewells everyone was giving to the refugees. Serenity managed to break through their discomfort and give both Thetan and K'Theelm a hug before they gathered with Jeneth to begin their journey. The air around them shimmered, and they rose into the air. Everybody felt compelled to watch until they were barely perceivable dots far above. Ami hated herself for wanting to go with them. "Come, you're all tired," Serenity said. "You need to rest. Let's go into the Palace." She led them through the soaring open double doors. At a gesture from her, they slowly closed behind them, coming together without a sound. It was utterly different than the dark place Ami remembered from their desperate trip to the thirtieth century. It was almost uncomfortably bright, the walls and floor and ceiling all glowing, immersing them in a shadowless world of light. The other thing that was obvious was that this was a mere skeleton of the Palace they had visited. The crystalline walls had been adorned with detail work that had softened their stark lines. The corridors they walked through now were utterly featureless, just angles and straight lines. To Ami's eyes it looked cold and lifeless. But somehow she could not think of it that way. It seemed to radiate a warmth that penetrated right through to her bones. The inside of the fully constructed Palace had been more pleasing to the eye. And yet comparing it to this was like comparing a cold cadaver to a living thing. Serenity showed them to an open shaft. Even after she explained what it was, Ami felt a moment of dread when the King and Queen stepped over the precipice. But as she had said, they soon floated up out of sight. Of the rest of them, only Saturn did not seem ill at ease stepping into the shaft. Ami squeezed Venus' hand tightly, and her stomach lurched as they both stepped over the edge. She lost all sensation of weight and they started to float up the corridor with everyone else. Some force kept them away from the walls and each other. After just a couple of minutes, Ami saw the people above them one by one reaching out to the entrance at the top of the shaft and exiting through it, following Serenity's lead. Ami did likewise. She and Venus floated out the entrance and landed softly on the floor, their weight gradually returning. Venus gasped. "Ami, it's just like I remember it." "Yes." Unlike the stark interior, the vast garden that graced the top of this portion of the spire was fully developed. Well, almost. Ami remembered there having been more ornamentation, lanterns and statues and such. But the plants and trees were all there, and the fountains were working, making happy gurgling and splashing sounds. The glowing white ceiling far above lit everything with a diffuse light. "Everyone, we can relax here," Serenity said. She put her hand to her breast and closed her eyes. She was surrounded by shimmering red ribbons. When they dispersed, she was dressed in a simple sleeveless long white dress. "When we are here, we can stop being warriors." Ami saw others reversing their transformations, all surrounded by shimmering lights of their own distinctive colour. She did likewise, immersing herself in the familiar blue light. She and everybody else gasped, as they looked at each other and then down at themselves. Endymion was now in a simple tunic, and all the Senshi were in flowing white dresses, all similar but each with subtle differences. Venus laughed happily. She did an elegant pirouette, sending her dress billowing out around her, catching its fabric in both her hands before it went swirling down again. "We all look like Greek goddesses now!" "I guess we'll have to call you Aphrodite," Haruka quipped. Ami felt the fabric of her own dress. It was like the skirt of her Senshi uniform, soft and silky. It felt good. She realized that she was now barefoot. It was not uncomfortable, the floor seemed to be warmed from its own gentle glow. "I hope you like them," Serenity said. "I'm not sure how I did that, but they just came into my head." Serenity led them all a short distance to a little field of grass surrounded on three sides by a cluster of fruit trees, a colourful flower bed and a great towering fountain with water gently flowing down its terraces. They all sat down together. Many including Ami sighed with relief. She was just starting to realize how bone-weary she was. She ran her hand along the verdant ground cover. It was not really grass, more like a carpet of spongy moss, soft but strong and dry. It had felt good on her feet, and felt even better to recline on. "I can't believe it," Makoto said, looking around. "Those trees look decades old." "The life energy collected by the Seed Crystal went into them," Serenity said. "But as the power fades, most of this garden will begin to go dark. The plants will not die, they will just go into dormancy. In the end, just a small area here in the middle of the garden will remain living, lit by a small part of the ceiling above like a spotlight. Without an influx of energy from the Moon Kingdom, that is all it will be able to sustain." "I guess my plants back home will freeze to death," Makoto said. Then a look of revulsion came over her, as if she were disgusted by what she had said. She shook her head. "Oh Gods, what a thing to be thinking about." "Mako-chan, don't," Serenity said soothingly. "You should grieve for all the living things that will soon be gone, there's nothing wrong with that." Makoto looked imploringly at her. "Serenity ... what we're going to do, are you sure it's the only way?" For just a moment Serenity's face was a mask of grief and shame. It faded like the passing of a ghost. "I ... my mother made the Null Field so that it would bind itself to the earth. The only way to destroy the field would be to destroy the earth itself. They are now one. It will only be gone when it fades away of its own accord." "Why did Queen Serenity make such a thing?" Minako asked. "Because I advised her to." They all looked at Setsuna. Even Hotaru paused from the healing she had been performing on Setsuna's arm. The faint glow around her hands vanished, and she regarded her sister's expressionless face with shock. "The Earth was in danger of being overrun by the Dark Kingdom," she continued. "Were that to happen, we would be next. Rather than having Serenity risk her life by using the Ginzuishou, I wanted to set a trap for them on Earth. A Trojan Horse that would rob them of their power. She rejected the idea outright. But she must have had the seed for the Crystal Palace altered without telling me. I always suspected that she never fully trusted the Guardians of Time. I can hardly blame her." The last of her words were tinged with bitterness. "Setsuna." Ami's whole body tensed up at what she heard in Rei's voice. "You knew what the Seed Crystal might have been. You knew that it might have done this." "I thought it to be very unlikely." Rei leaped to her feet. "Get up!" she rasped. "I want you on your feet when I kill you!" She advanced a step, but something suddenly flashed across her outstretched hand and she cried out in pain and surprise. Mamoru was in his black armour again. His arm was still held in the follow-through of his throw. Ami followed the line of sight to see a red rose embedded in a tree trunk on the other side of the clearing. "I'm sorry Rei, I can't let you do that. Not here." Rei stared at him in shock. She held onto her bruised hand. She was shaking, her shuddering breaths coming quickly and unevenly. Serenity was on her feet now too. She walked over to Rei, took her gently by the shoulders. "Rei, this is not the time," she said softly. "Come sit down." Her touch seemed to calm Rei a bit. But somehow she looked even more anguished. Ashamed. She lowered her head. Ami could just glimpse her face. She looked like she wanted to go somewhere and scream or cry. Endymion's armour faded and he collapsed to the ground. There were shouts of alarm. Ami leapt to her feet and transformed as she ran, her blue visor materializing almost immediately. Serenity was already kneeling beside him. Ami would have expected her to be hysterical, but she was calmly and carefully lifting Mamoru enough to move in and rest his head on her lap. His face looked peaceful, but he was not responding. Mercury went through her diagnosis. "He's not injured," she said. "All his vital signs are fine. It looks like he just passed out, probably from exhaustion." "I know," Serenity said. "His life force is weak but stable. I think all he needs is rest. He should be coming around any second," Mercury said. "He will," Serenity said with the same air of assurance. Mamoru's eyes opened. He smiled weakly. "I guess I stood up too fast." "How do you feel?" Ami asked. "Just a little tired." He sat up, looking none the worse for wear. Ami transformed back, noting that she was in her white dress again. Absently, she wondered what happened to the clothes she had been wearing when she had transformed at the Order's headquarters. Everyone else had been gathered around, but now they were giving Mamoru more room, going to sit back more or less where they had been before. Even Rei sat down, her rage having been extinguished by her fear for Mamoru. "Endymion," Serenity said in a soft but clear voice. "I think we should tell them." He nodded. "Yes, I think you're right." "Tell us what?" Rei asked, her voice almost shrill with fear. "Jeneth noticed it when she was examining me," Serenity said. "She also took a close look at Endymion's aura. His life energy is slowly fading." "But there's nothing wrong with him!" Ami protested. Then she recalled her earlier curiosity about what had happened while she was out. "Serenity, is it something the Ancients did to him?" Serenity shook her head. "No. It's because of what has happened to the Earth. The way Jeneth explained it, Endymion is the Avatar of the Earth. He is linked to it just as we are linked to the planets we represent." "What's going to happen to him?" Rei asked. Serenity looked sympathetically at Rei. "I'm sorry, I should have said right from the beginning. He's not dying." Ami had already surmised that, from the calm way Serenity was explaining the matter. But Rei looked agonized, as if she still didn't dare feel relieved. Makoto moved over and put an arm around her shoulders. She hardly seemed to notice. "He's going to fall into a deep sleep," Serenity said. "Jeneth said it will happen gradually. He will need more and more sleep as time passes, until one day he won't be able to wake up." "Isn't there anything we can do?" Haruka asked. Serenity nodded. "Yes, there is." Ami had already figured that part out. "We'll have to put him in suspended animation," she said. "Until the Earth is restored." "But that won't be for centuries!" Rei protested. "Yes," Serenity said. She looked into Endymion's eyes. They joined hands, and Serenity turned to face the Senshi again. "I ... we will all have get by without Endymion until the Earth has at least started to heal." They all absorbed the news in stunned silence. Rei looked to be on the verge of collapse, as if Makoto's holding her was the only thing keeping her from keeling over onto the ground. "Rei." She looked shocked at having been addressed by Endymion. His expression was stern, but his eyes were full of sympathy and fondness. "Rei, I'll need you to take care of Serenity while I'm gone." He smiled. "Make sure she doesn't get into trouble, okay?" Her expression softened a bit. She was looking a little better. "How long ... ?" She couldn't seem to find the words. "Days or weeks," Endymion said. "Jeneth said it wouldn't be unpleasant, just like falling asleep." "Speaking of sleep, I think we could all use some," Michiru said. "That's a very good idea," Serenity said. "I'm afraid there aren't any beds. My mother told me how I might coax them to grow out of the crystal, though it will probably take me some time to learn how." "That's okay," Makoto said, still letting Rei lean against her. "I think I could zonk out right here." Serenity laughed. "Well, I would suggest everybody spread out a bit. Endymion is well used to my snoring, but I know some of you are light sleepers." Makoto gave Rei a little shake. "Come one, we're out of here. A hundred meters away, at least." Rei actually smiled a bit. She let Makoto coax her to her slightly wobbly feet. It looked like sheer physical and emotional exhaustion were going to drop her any moment. "I'll change the light cycle," Serenity said. "The what?" Venus asked. Serenity just closed her eyes and appeared to be concentrating. The light started to dim. After a few seconds, the ceiling was giving off just a gentle silvery light. It was a bit brighter than the full moon, Ami thought. Serenity's mention of the light cycle prompted her to check the chronometer in her wrist communicator. It was just early evening. That hardly seemed possible. The Earth had been doomed in an afternoon. "Setsuna, I should try to do at least a bit more healing on you," Hotaru said. "It will help you sleep better. Come on, let's go where we won't disturb anybody." Setsuna smiled. "Thank you, Hotaru." She allowed herself to be helped to her feet by the young girl and led away. Ami wondered if it was coincidence they were going in the opposite direction that Makoto had taken Rei. Whatever the case, it was probably a good idea. Haruka and Michiru stood up. "I'm not sure any of us can have pleasant dreams on this night," Haruka said gravely, looking down at Serenity and Endymion. "I think about all I can wish you is a good sleep with no nightmares." "And you," Endymion said. Haruka and Michiru walked away, their arms wrapped around each other's waist. Minako stood up. "Come on Ami, that leaves you and me." She reached down and helped Ami up. She waved at Serenity and Endymion. "'Night Serenity. Don't worry about sleeping in, I'm sure Ami won't let any of us do that." Minako managed to find a thick tuft of the spongy moss to serve as a pillow of sorts. But it was Minako's warm breast where Ami rested her head. The familiar, comforting touch soon lulled her to sleep. ***** Rei woke with a start. It took her a moment to remember where she was. She sat up. To her dark adjusted eyes it actually seemed quite bright now. But it was still just moonlight. Not moonlight, she reminded herself. It would be a very, very long time before any of them saw the moon again. Makoto was still sleeping next to her. Rei smiled. She remembered Makoto still gently rubbing her back as she was falling asleep. She found that this simple kindness had melted away her rage, allowed her to set aside the shame. Now there was only the grief, but that she knew how to deal with. Rei checked her chronometer. Early morning. She smiled. What did that matter now? Their time would be measured by centuries of darkness. She got up and walked back to where she and Makoto had left the others. It looked like others had also found their own sleeping spots. There was only Mamoru, and Usagi sleeping with her head nestled under his chin. She shook her head. Not Usagi. Serenity. Get used to it. Feeling restless, she walked a little further through the garden. The sight of an oversized fountain with a shallow pool of standing water reminded her how grimy she felt. She felt the water. It was warm. Well, why not. She stripped out of the dress and climbed in, careful to keep her hair out of the water. Maybe later Serenity could conjure some towels out of wherever she got these dresses. For now she would have to be satisfied with drip-drying. She decided against becoming Mars and starting a fire to quicken the process. Even though it was darker, she felt as if she were basking under a warm sun. Only it was better, she felt warmed to her core. Even while she was drying, she did not feel chilled at all. When she had dried enough to slip the dress back on, she decided to try some of the fruit on the nearby trees. They were delicious, but Rei had no idea what they were. Something from the Moon Kingdom, maybe Serenity would know. After she slaked her thirst at a smaller fountain, she became aware of a growing discomfort. She recalled from her previous visit that they had found facilities discretely tucked in various corners of the garden and elsewhere. If the fountains were working, did that mean everything was? It did. Rei emerged back into the garden and walked towards where they had entered it. The little crystal structure with the two entrances was glowing faintly. Like a night light, she thought. When she approached closer, she could clearly see the ripples of light strobing along the surface inside the two shafts, one going up one going down. Up and down elevators. That reminded Rei about their promise to the Director, to check in with the guards at the gate regularly. Hopefully if anybody else had gone to do that, they would have left a message on the voice messaging system Ami had programmed into their communicators. Rei flipped up her own communicator and set it to record a general message. "It's Rei. I've gone down to check at the front gate, I'll come right back to the garden." Rei had second thoughts when she leaned into the shaft and looked down. Somehow, going down was worse. She gritted her teeth and stepped up to the edge. Standing here she almost felt weightless, so it wasn't quite so bad. She pushed herself into the shaft and started to descend slowly. She had a moment of panic when she realized she didn't know how to stop at the main level. Then she remembered everybody reaching out to the door to the garden. And the entrance at that level had seemed bigger than the others. At least she thought so. A bigger entrance did come into view. She reached out for it, and the shaft deposited her on the ledge. She breathed easier. She found herself wondering what happened if there was a power failure. Something for Ami to figure out. They had only made one turn on the way to the elevator shaft, so even though all the corridors looked the same it wasn't difficult to find the front gate again. Now there was just the matter of how to open them. Maybe it really was as simple as Serenity had made it seem. She stood before the gates and gestured as she had, concentrating on the image of the doors opening. Silently they started to swing in. She smiled. "Open sesame," she muttered. She shivered slightly at the chill air that came in. But she still felt warmed by the presence of the Palace, so it was not really uncomfortable. She had expected to see the two men in overcoats and dark glasses. But the third man watching the gates open took her by surprise. "Ichiro- san!" The diminutive priest smiled. "It's good to see you again Rei." Then she remembered. "I forgot that you're a member of the Order. How long have you been waiting?" "Just a couple of hours. I specifically asked for the 'guard detail' as these young men call it." "Ichiro-san ..." she wasn't quite sure how to word this. "Do you know about what's going on?" "Yes. In a few days you and the other Sailor Senshi will try to put as many people as possible into a deep sleep that will keep them alive when the world freezes over." He made it sound so simple. And he made it sound like he had no doubt she could do it. She took some comfort from that. "We've all been sleeping." "I should think so. Yesterday must have been the longest day of your life." She sighed. "You don't know the half of it." "Hino-san, it's gotten colder," one of the men in glasses said. "Would you like to borrow my coat?" "No thank you, the Palace warms us." "I feel it myself," Ichiro said. "I'd like to invite you in, but Serenity seems to think it would be dangerous for anyone but us." "Quite all right. It's remarkable enough just standing here before it. I never thought to see such a wonder." "How have things been going out here?" Rei asked. "Well enough," Ichiro said. "Nobody has tried to attack the Palace." "Attack the Palace?" Rei said incredulously. "It's a definite risk," said the man who had spoken before. "The government and defense forces are aware of the appearance of the Palace. But the Director has convinced them to help keep it quiet." "How in hell can you keep it quiet?" Rei asked. "It's at least a kilometre high and it's glowing like a beacon!" "Most radio communications are down and commercial air traffic has been grounded," the man said. "We're also evacuating a wider area around the Palace. All of this is making it easier to keep news of the Palace from spreading." The meaning of this suddenly dawned on her. "You're not telling anybody," she said in a slow, shocked voice. "You're not telling anybody what's really going on." "I'm afraid we can't," Ichiro said. "Even if just the existence of the Palace became known, you can imagine what would happen." It wasn't hard to figure out. "Everybody would think the Palace was still causing this darkness," Rei said. "They'd attack it." "Yes," Ichiro said. "And needless to say, we can't make it generally be known that only people in Tokyo will be saved." "Gods, you're right." Rei frowned. "Ichiro-san ... I hardly know how to ask this. What's convinced you that we *haven't* caused this by ourselves?" He looked disappointed that she could ask that question. "I trust you. That's all. For those of us who must work in secret, trust is our only bond." Rei smiled, remembering Serenity's words to the Director. She couldn't think of a better way to put it. "You honour me with your trust, Ichiro-san. I swear I'll do everything I can to live up to it." "I know you will, Rei-san," he said. "Before I let you get back to your work, I have something to give you. Please wait a moment." He walked over and picked up a long, thin white cloth bundle Rei had noticed before. He brought it back and held it out to her. "Takada-san's blades." Rei's eyes went wide. She crouched down and took the bundle. "Ichiro-san ... why?" "He requested that they go to you upon his death, and the Director agreed." She hugged the bundle to her chest. "Thank you." "Take care of yourself, Rei." "You too." She stepped back and willed the doors to close. She stood there for a while. It was starting to get to her again, the enormity of what was happening. She went through some breathing exercises. "So there you are." Serenity was standing on a balcony overlooking the vast entrance hall that the gates opened onto. "I thought I sensed the doors opening." She was back in her more formal dress with the butterfly wings. Perhaps because she thought she would be greeting allies come to see her. She started walking down a ramp that led down to ground level. Rei walked to the base of the ramp to meet her. Serenity stopped a short distance above her. "What's in the package?" "Takada-san's blades. The Masamune and the dagger." Serenity smiled warmly. "He must have thought very highly of you, to give you such a gift." "I suppose so." Serenity looked sad. She walked a couple of steps lower and put her hand on the railing. "Rei, I sense there's something bothering you. I think you should tell me about it." Rei set her bundle on the wide railing beside her. She lowered her head and folded her hands. It felt like a confessional. "Serenity, yesterday I awakened a new power within myself. A new weapon. I don't even wish to name it. I awakened it in the ugliest way imaginable, when I was in the throes of blind hatred, of animal rage. Since then, I've felt as if I crossed the line from being a warrior to being a killer." "That's how Minako felt too. I could tell." Rei looked up. She had heard it in Serenity's voice, but to actually see her smile was like a benediction. "I know both of you," she continued. "I know you well enough to know that you would rather die than hurt the innocent. I don't even need to know what you did, or what you think you did. If you committed evil, I know it wasn't what you intended. Even Sailor Senshi have to learn by making mistakes." "But people get killed when we make mistakes," Rei said. "And people will be killed if we do nothing. The fact that you admit the error is proof enough you can correct it. If you lost control of your anger, then learn from it and move on. What more could anybody ask of you?" It was a few seconds before Rei answered. "I'll try. Thank you." Serenity sighed. "You were always harder on yourself than you ever were on me." She moved to embrace Rei and tripped on her dress. Rei caught her but lost her footing. They both went down on their knees. Rei managed to more or less cushion her fall. "Serenity, are you hurt?" She smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of her neck. "Eh heh. I guess I'm just not used to this dress yet." There was silence. Serenity slowly developed a frown of worry. "Rei, is something wrong?" Rei grabbed her by the shoulders and kissed her fiercely. She broke it off and looked into Usagi's eyes. Usagi didn't look exactly shocked, just very surprised and bewildered. Rei was just becoming fully aware of what she had done. "Serenity ... forgive me, I ..." There was no other simple way to put this. "I thought I'd lost you." Her confused expression evaporated. She stroked Rei's cheek. "Rei- chan, I'm so sorry. I should have seen it right a way. I should have seen what you were afraid of." She reached out for Rei and gathered her in her arms, holding her close. "I'm still Usagi." Rei felt all the tension go out of her. "God, I was so scared." Usagi went on stroking her hair. "I didn't become a Goddess in here. I've just got a lot of things running around in my head that I only half understand. I know I'm going to make a lot of mistakes. I'll still need you to catch me when I stumble." Rei squeezed her tight. "I will," she whispered. "Always." End Chapter 15 --------------4E541C2F21E3-- From - Sun Jan 11 12:23:25 1998 Return-Path: Received: from smtp27.bellglobal.com (smtp27.bellglobal.com [204.101.251.55]) by pop50.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA02287 for ; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:53:31 -0500 (EST) Received: from access.mbnet.mb.ca (root@access.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.11]) by smtp27.bellglobal.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id OAA25763 for ; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:53:28 -0500 (EST) Received: from ts7m-4.mbnet.mb.ca (ts7m-4.mbnet.mb.ca [204.112.178.119]) by access.mbnet.mb.ca (8.8.7/8.8.7) with SMTP id NAA12143; Sat, 10 Jan 1998 13:52:01 -0600 (CST) Message-ID: <34B7FBD6.1978@mbnet.mb.ca> Date: Sat, 10 Jan 1998 14:53:10 -0800 From: Ken Wolfe Reply-To: Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca X-Mailer: Mozilla 3.0 (Win16; U) MIME-Version: 1.0 To: Chris Davies , Jerry Yen , John Hitchens , Piotr Gaj , echo5a@deskmedia.com, Tim Nolan Subject: [Fanfic: SM - Secrets 16] Content-Type: multipart/mixed; boundary="------------9C4473543" X-UIDL: 573e9b3156599d08ec4100bce4b64a71 X-Mozilla-Status: 0001 Content-Length: 10091 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. --------------9C4473543 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit (file attached) -- Ken Wolfe | Fax: Sorry, I hate fax machines Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Compu$erve: 73527.2203@compuserve.com Ken_Wolfe@MBnet.MB.CA | GEnie: k.wolfe8@genie.geis.com --------------9C4473543 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; name="SECRET16.TXT" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline; filename="SECRET16.TXT" Secrets Chapter 16 - Sleep Shingo trudged through the snow, shivering. There were much fewer people out today, so he was making fresh tracks through the virgin snow. It was coming down even harder now. And they said it was going to get a lot worse. He walked up to the house. He saw that his mother had given up sweeping the walk. A broom wasn't much use against half a meter of snow. You would need a shovel. There were places on earth where they did have shovels to move snow. But Tokyo wasn't one of those places. At least not until the last three days. As soon as he opened the door, he heard the footsteps. His mother walked briskly into the hallway. She smiled. "Welcome home, Shingo." He could see it in her eyes. The disappointment that it hadn't been *her* at the door. So there had been no news. They hadn't heard from her. He still asked. "Were there any calls?" "The phones are still out. They say it's the ice on the lines." "There's a whole section of Juban with the power out. It's pitch dark there, I had to take the longer way home." "They must have closed the school really early then." "Not even half the people were in homeroom, so they just cancelled the whole day. I'm sure they'll close permanently, especially if the snow is getting worse." "Well, you look frozen. Go into the living room and I'll make you some hot chocolate." "Thanks Mom." He hung up his coat and went into the living room. "Hi Dad." "Hi Shoji." His dad hadn't even bothered going to work today. The highways were paralyzed and most of the trains weren't running, he would have had no hope of getting to the office. Naturally he was watching CNN. Shoji sat down. "Anything new?" "They found the wreckage of that Space Shuttle that was caught in orbit. Somewhere in California. They figure the crew tried to de-orbit on their own and something went wrong." "They would have run out of air today," Shingo said. His mother brought hot drinks for them. They were all wearing sweaters and they had the space heaters on. Like most Tokyo homes, this one just wasn't built for the sort of temperatures they were getting. "I managed to find a telephone booth that was working when I went shopping today," his mother said. "But I was only able to reach the Aino house. They still haven't heard from Minako." None of Usagi's friends had been heard from. Not since the darkness had descended. Their parents had all been calling each other regularly, hoping for news. That is, until the phones started going down. "Did you call Hotaru's school again today?" his father asked. "Yeah. They still haven't seen her." He had also left daily messages on the answering machine at her home. Begging her to call. His mother sighed. "I'm still certain they all went off to a hot springs without telling us. That would be so like Usagi. Now they're probably snowed in up in the mountains. They'll probably be there until this cold spell ends." She had been trying to convince herself of that for the past three days. It was sounding less and less convincing all the time. Both the part about Usagi being at a hot springs, and the part about the cold spell ever ending. They kept watching the news. Reception was spotty, and there were many intervals of dead air. With all the satellite links down, the networks were virtually paralyzed. They still managed to get some pictures in though. Lots of pictures of snow falling on palm trees, that was a favourite one. But they were all dancing around the simple fact that nobody had a clue what was going on. Naturally the millennial doom cults were having a field day. But now they had good company. There were also all sorts of pictures of droves of people in shrines and temples and churches and mosques and synagogues, all asking the same question, all asking why. The doorbell rang. "I'll get it," his mother said. Shingo's heart picked up when he heard the door opening. Somebody who had the key. He watched his mother walk into the hallway. He saw it on her face before she even said it. "Usagi!" Shingo was on his feet in a moment, running for the hall. His mother was already squeezing the life out of Usagi, scolding her in an increasingly tearful voice. But Shingo hardly noticed that. "Hotaru-chan ..." "Shingo-kun!" Unlike Usagi, Hotaru had been given time to remove her boots. She stepped up from the entranceway and ran into his arms. He was about to ask her where she had been when she smothered him with a kiss that went on forever. Then she just crushed him to her, as tight as she could. He no longer cared where she had been, he just held her. He became aware of his surroundings again. Mother had let go of Usagi long enough for her to take off her boots and go hug their father. When Hotaru finally let him go it was Usagi's turn. She held him then stepped back to look into his face. Seeing her close up it was obvious that something was different. She seemed so ... he searched for the word. So serene. "Onesama, where the hell have you been?" Her smile was warm and comforting. "Shingo, there are some things we need to tell you." ***** The hummer pulled up to where Minako was waiting. Smith grinned at her. "Hi Minako. You haven't got much snow on you so I guess you weren't waiting long." "Just a couple of minutes," she said. She was happy it was somebody she knew coming to pick her up. She climbed in beside him, removed her fur hood and mittens. "I'm sure glad you lent us this arctic wear." "It's thirty below now," Smith said. "You wouldn't want to be standing out there without it." Smith sent the hummer ploughing through the snow. Even with its enormous tires it was slow going in places. Had it been a couple of days later they probably would have had to pick her up in a snowmobile. In some of the northerly cities, that was the only viable means of transportation already. "So how did it go?" Smith asked. "It went good." "We were getting worried, you didn't call until the last minute." "They really didn't want me to leave." Smith grinned. "Even after you've saved the world, you'll still be their little girl. When you wake them up five hundred years from now the first thing they're going to ask you is whether you've been eating properly." She giggled. "You know, I can picture that." They had bought the part about her being Sailor V and Sailor Venus. Mom and Dad had always suspected she had some sort of weird part-time job she wasn't telling them about. They had just been afraid it was something that would ... well, something that would take advantage of her exotic beauty. It was the part about the suspended animation that had been difficult, she couldn't explain it all nearly as well as Ami could. Dad had wanted to know how his bond portfolio would be doing five hundred years from now. At any rate, they had promised her not to leave Tokyo for any reason. There was virtually no traffic. The city was essentially paralyzed now. They drove through sections of the city where the power was down and it was pitch black. City crews were out all over the place trying to keep up with the damage, but it was a losing battle. It was just a good thing their destination could be seen from such a distance, Smith had no trouble zeroing in on it. He stopped the car at the base of the tower. "I guess you'll be a lot older and wiser the next time I see you," he said. "Yeah. Maybe I'll get some respect then." His expression sobered. "Minako?" "Yes?" "When you're done, don't count the dead. Count the living." She smiled. "Thanks, Smith-san." "By the way, my real name is Zwierciadlowski." She winced. "Ouch." "Best of luck to you." "Take care." The guards admitted her into the tower. Officially it was closed to the public now. But the Director had made special arrangements. They seemed to be pretty much occupying the place now. The Suit in charge escorted her to the elevator. There she got another surprise. "Saori! Is this really in your job description?" She smiled. "Well, at least they didn't tell me to dress up as an elevator doll." She closed the door and the elevator started going up. "The Director called again ten minutes ago. You're the last one, they were getting worried." "Zero-hour is still almost an hour away." "Mister Brown doesn't like leaving things to chance." They emerged from the tower base. The windows were half frosted, but they still provided a panoramic view of the city. Even through the driving snow, she could see that much of the city was in blackness. The heroic attempts to keep the utilities running were slowly being overwhelmed by the worsening weather. The infrastructure that supplied people with the necessities of life was breaking down. People were starting to die by the hundreds. The time had finally come. "Are you staying here at ground one?" Minako asked. "That's ground zero. Yes, I am." Which was a mixed blessing. Theoretically this was the best place on earth to be right now. But Ami had warned that there might be some unexpected side-effects right at the epicentre. Well, they had a better chance than the ones that were still out guarding the Palace. Even by the most optimistic estimates, the effect would come nowhere near there. She wondered how many of the troops there understood what was going to be happening today. The elevator came to a stop and the door opened. It was another parting where Minako wasn't sure what to say. What do you say to somebody you won't see in centuries? "Be seeing you." "Be seeing you." Minako walked onto the observation deck of Tokyo Tower. The glowing crystals they had brought from the Palace were keeping it warm. Which meant the windows were almost completely frosted over. All of the Sailor Senshi were there, sitting in big cushy chairs that had been brought up here for them. They had all transformed. Minako did likewise. Serenity walked over to her and took her hands. "You told them?" "Yes." "And?" Venus smiled. "You and Rei were right. It was the proudest moment of my life." "That's what everybody's been saying." It had been their compromise with the Director, who was deathly afraid of leaks. They could each tell their immediate family. Those with no immediate family could tell one friend or significant other. Over some heated objections from the others, Serenity had agreed to comply with his request. But Minako knew that Serenity was the one most suffering under this restriction. There was one special person she probably ached to tell what was going on. Minako had encouraged her to cheat. Hopefully she had. "Sorry I'm late. I stayed at the cathedral for a while before getting them to drive me to my folks' place." They had all at least dropped by there in the past couple of days, to say goodbye to Luna and Artemis. For Minako that had been a parting just as painful as that with her parents. The centuries would weigh more heavily without her beloved friend and mentor. He had muttered about being put on ice again like 'some damned popsicle.' But the cats were probably not as long-lived as the Senshi. It was for the best. "Actually, you're just on time," Serenity said. "In just a few minutes we'll be starting the exercises Rei has been teaching us." While Mercury had been doing a lot of calculations and preparations, the rest of them had been doing a lot of meditating under Rei's direction. They would have to lend Serenity their power as they never had before. They had to make sure everybody was in the best possible shape to do that. Minako took her seat. "Serenity, are you really going ahead with that message you wanted to send out?" She smiled. "Yes. I've been practicing until I can send it out without even thinking, just by using the Ginzuishou. Even Pluto is happy with the idea now." "I didn't say I was happy," Pluto said. "I said I don't think it can do any harm. We're not even sure if it will do what you intend." "Shall we begin?" Mars asked. Serenity nodded. "Okay. Tell us what you want us to do." Minako wanted to ask everybody how their own meetings with their families had gone, she had only heard from Usagi and Hotaru. But there would be time for that later. There would be plenty of time for that later. ***** "It looks like half the city is out now," Umino said, looking out through the little spot of the window he was keeping clear with occasional wipes of his hand. "I hardly see any lights at all." "Umino, come to bed," Naru said. "You'll freeze over there." "In a minute. I'm still trying to figure out what's going on around Tokyo Tower. The whole tower is lit up now, it's like they've got floodlights on it." "Well, if they've got power to spare for that, why can't they spare some for us?" If it wasn't for the kerosene lamp Umino had the presence of mind to get on the first day of the darkness, they would have nothing but their flashlight now. "It's not lack of power, it's distribution," Umino said. "The ice is still bringing down all the power lines." Naru sighed. She reached over to the postcard sitting on the nighttable next to her, scooted up in bed and read it again. It was definitely her handwriting, as terrible as ever. Naru-chan: I'm sorry I haven't been able to come and talk with you the past few days. A lot has been happening, and I've been very busy. But please don't worry, we'll meet again soon and everything will be fine. Tell Umino and your mother to just stay home and wait. I'll be coming to see you soon. Your friend, Usagi She realized how spaced out she had been when she suddenly saw Umino sitting on the bed beside her. He smiled at her. "I'm sure she'll be okay. She's never failed before, right?" She returned his smile. "Right." "Should we put out the light?" "Could you just put it down real low? I don't like to be in pitch dark." He looked like he wanted to lecture about conserving kerosene, but he just nodded. He reached out and turned the knob to lower the wick until the lamp was just barely lit. Then he climbed under the quilt with her. She snuggled up to him. "I wish I'd asked mom to be here. She's all alone. And there are looters." "The looters are after food, not jewellery," Umino said. He was right. And to be fair, there really wasn't a lot of that going on. A couple of days ago, before the power outages started getting really serious, the Prime Minister had addressed the nation. He had finally admitted that they had no idea what was happening, nor any power to stop it. He encouraged everybody to do what they could to weather the storm, to hold on to the hope that it would pass. They would do everything they could to survive, the would not go gently into the long night. But if this truly was the end and go they must, then they would go with dignity and grace. It would be overstating the case to say that his speech had galvanized the nation. But there now seemed to be a bit more resolve to either endure the storm until it lifted or to face the end bravely. There was just a little less panic, a little less frantic raving about God's retribution. But there were still many people who felt that this was punishment. Punishment for having unleashed a horror on themselves, and for having stood by and let it kill a fifth of their numbers. Naru didn't buy it. This was just another of the monsters that Sailor Moon would fight and defeat. "Naru-chan," Umino said. "Is it getting lighter?" "What?" She turned her head to look over at the window. She thought she was imagining it, but the frost on the window did seem to be faintly backlit now. "Maybe the power's back in the next block." Even as she said it, she didn't believe it. This was something different. She gasped, abruptly sat up in bed. "Umino, do you think it's over?" "It's a moonless night," he said. "Even if the blackness went away, the sky would still be dark." "I want to go look." She threw back the quilt, shivering at the cold air that bit even through her warmest pyjamas. She was just about to slip her feet into the fluffy bunny slippers when it began. She crawled quickly across the bed and they wrapped their arms around each other. "Umino, what is it?" Wisps of sparkling silver mist were descending on them, like they were falling straight through the ceiling. She couldn't tear her eyes from it. In her mind there was a battle between mortal dread and awe over the beautiful, unearthly spectacle. An image like a mirage began to form within the mist. "Usagi ..." she breathed. It was her, and it was not. It was somebody as different from Sailor Moon as she was different from Usagi. She had white robes and wings and a beatific smile just like an angel. Her lips did not move, and there was no sound, but Naru heard it nonetheless, heard a single word spoken to her. *Sleep.* All the tension washed out of her. She melted into Umino's arms and let the shower of silvery mist envelop her. She was no longer afraid. A pleasant drowsiness came over her, and she surrendered to it. Just before she closed her eyes, her vision of their room seemed to blur and break up into segments, like she was looking at it through a beautiful clear crystal. "Good night, Umino," she murmured. ***** Hotaru woke up thinking surely some great weight was lying on top of her. She couldn't move, her limbs felt like they were being held down by lead weights. She opened her eyes to find there was nothing over her but the ceiling of the observation deck. Tentatively, she tried lifting a hand again. It came up a bit, then dropped back down like a magnet had snatched it. There was movement. Mercury walked towards her and crouched down over her. Her sad, worried eyes were covered by her translucent blue visor. Little blinking lights played all over the visor. Some of the worry left her eyes and she smiled. "Don't try to move for a while yet. You're very weak." Hotaru opened her mouth to ask the question, but all that came out was a squeak. "Just relax, Hotaru. It's over. We did it. Everybody will be fine." Her mind eased somewhat, Hotaru was content to just obey doctor's orders for a while. Over a period of minutes, some of her strength returned. When she was ready, Mercury helped her sit up and take some water. She looked around to see Serenity and the other Senshi lying on the floor around her, more or less where they had been when Hotaru had finally blacked out. Mercury had left them where they dropped, just positioned them to be more comfortable. "How long?" Hotaru finally managed to ask. "We lasted for two hours seventeen minutes. I woke up after fourteen hours. That was three hours ago." Had it really gone on for just over two hours? That was longer than they had hoped for, which was good. But it had seemed like an eternity of agony. "So you passed out too." "Yes. I was hoping I wouldn't, since I was just providing the form of the magic, the rest of you were providing the power. We were lucky, nobody needed medical attention." "So they'll all wake up soon?" "Serenity may be out for a day or more. It was a near thing, her life signs were just barely stable when I woke up. She went on long after the rest of you had passed out. She and I must have collapsed around the same time." "That's sad," Hotaru said. "You'll be putting Endymion in cold sleep pretty soon, these are the last days they'll have together for a long time. Do you think there's some way you could wake her up sooner?" "I'd like to, believe me. But that wouldn't be a good idea. After what we've all been through, we need to let our natural healing processes run their course." "I guess you're right. Did you call Endymion?" "Yes, I told him everybody's fine. He said the Order is pulling out from around the Palace." "I wonder where they're going?" "The Director never said," Mercury said. She smiled, pointing down. "And we won't be able to ask him for a very long time." Hotaru knew they had already talked about this, but she had to ask. "Mercury, if we did it on a smaller scale, could we-" "No," Mercury said flatly. "It will be weeks before we could even think to attempt this again. By then it would be too late." Hotaru felt like she could get up now. Her legs were more or less steady. "My Glaive ..." "I saw it disappear when you passed out," Mercury said. "Same as Pluto's Garnet Rod. Neither of you should try using them anytime soon, you'd probably just black out again." Hotaru walked over to Pluto and knelt beside her. She put her hand just over Pluto's forehead, almost touching the jewel held there by her tiara. She probed lightly with her healing touch. "She's having nightmares." "Her sleep has been very agitated. Same as Mars." It was a while before Hotaru spoke. "It's not over between them, is it?" Mercury walked over and crouched down next to her. She withdrew her visor, making her eyes look that much sadder. "Hotaru, sometimes Rei says things she doesn't mean." "Ami ... I don't know what to think. I can't hate either of them." Mercury sighed. "Neither can I." She smiled, reached out and lightly stroked Hotaru's hair. "It's something they'll have to sort out between them, we'll just have to trust them." She stood up and held out her hand. "Come on, I want to show you something." They walked over to the elevator. The doors were standing open. "I had to open them by brute force," Mercury said. That was when Hotaru noticed. "The power's out." The crystals they had brought from the Palace were providing the only illumination. To her Senshi eyes they far outdazzled the electric lights, Hotaru had hardly noticed that the latter were missing. "It was out when I woke up. All the people who were working to maintain the power grid are now in cold sleep." She led Hotaru over to the elevator. Saori was lying on the ground encased in crystal. "Why didn't she go back down to the ground level?" Hotaru asked. "I advised her to. If there were any negative side effects, they would be strongest up here. I'm not sure why she didn't. Maybe it's a gift to us. She knew we wouldn't have the strength to leave this room for a long time, to check on them. Maybe she wanted to give us positive assurance that we succeeded. Come look." She pulled out her palmtop computer and entered the elevator, crouching in front of Saori. Hotaru did likewise. Saori looked very peaceful. Something was coming up on Mercury's computer. "She's alive. And the crystals are perfectly formed. They'll preserve her for as long as she needs." "Then ... they're all okay." Hotaru said. "Yes. And look here." She tapped something and a map of Tokyo came up. It looked like a radar image. "The white is where the crystals spread." They had been looking at maps over the past few days, so the waterline around Tokyo Bay was very familiar to Hotaru now. The white practically filled the screen. "That's a lot more than what we thought," Hotaru said softly. "Yes. We did well." Ami folded her computer closed. "I'll want to examine a sample close up, but it's looking very good." She sounds just like a doctor, Hotaru thought. A doctor making another diagnosis. Hotaru took her hands. "Ami, you did it." She just gave Hotaru a puzzled frown. She still didn't get it. "You're a miracle worker. If not for you we would have had no hope at all. You should feel proud." Mercury smiled, but he sad eyes did not brighten. "Maybe it will sink in a little later. Right now I just feel kind of numb." Hotaru wanted so much for Ami to feel the joy and pride she deserved. She tried to take a guess at what was bothering her. "Ami, are you worried about Ryou?" She shook her head. "No, I'm sure he's safely asleep like the rest." "Did you tell him what's going on?" "No, I only told my mother, as I agreed. But you know, he didn't even ask. Maybe his intuition told him that he would be okay." "I think he just trusted you." Ami's smile looked a little brighter now. "Serenity told me that you and she spent the whole night at her mother's place." Hotaru felt a flush coming to her cheeks. "Yes." "Shingo must be very proud of you." Her blush deepened. "We ... talked, and we're kind of engaged now." Mercury chuckled lightly. "That's very clever of you." Hotaru frowned in puzzlement. "Marrying into the royal family, I mean." They both laughed as they had not in a long time. It felt wonderful. ***** "I think we're lost," Makoto said. "No we're not," Minako insisted. "We just need to go lower." "We have got to be three klicks underground," Makoto said. "How much lower can it go?" "Oh look!" Minako said brightly. "There's a down ramp! What did I tell you?" Makoto sighed. "I guess you won't be satisfied until we hit magma." "Don't you mean lava?" Minako asked. "Magma is ... yeah, I mean lava." Makoto put her hand against the ramp entrance and concentrated. A mark appeared on the door showing the direction they'd come from. They'd learned that trick a while ago. She followed Minako down the ramp. It went down a fair ways. "Just remember, we have to come back *up* here, Minako. We took the elevators down as far as they would go." "I think I see the bottom already." She was right. This time the ramp did not lead to another maze of corridors, but just one narrow corridor leading straight ahead. This was starting to look more interesting. There was a double door at the end of the corridor. "Want to take bets on whether this is it?" Minako asked. "Pass." Minako gestured for the doors to open, giving it rather more flourish than what was required. They swung out. Even before they had finished opening, Makoto could see that she had been right. Minako was all smiles. "Good thing you didn't take that bet." They walked into the high-ceiling round room. Each of the twelve segments in the wall held a steep pointed lancet arch like the one they had come through. There was a triangular column embedded in the wall between each wall segment, going from the polished floor to the pointed dome ceiling far overhead. In the middle of the room was a dais like a truncated cone, a meter high and five meters across. In the middle of it was a brightly glowing spire like a little obelisk, three meters high. It was exactly like the room Endymion had showed them a hologram of in the thirtieth century. Except in the hologram the four Inner Senshi were gathered around the obelisk, faced outward with joined hands. They were providing the power needed to protect the palace in the absence of Serenity and her Ginzuishou. Makoto's jaw dropped down as Minako took a running high jump to the top of the dais. "Hey!" Minako turned around, sending her white dress swirling. "What?" "That could be dangerous. I mean, this is like the engine room or something." "Well, Serenity said there's no power source. The saved up energy is already fading." It was true. The corridors were already getting dimmer. Serenity said they would eventually fade to a very dull glow, just like most of the garden would be in virtual darkness. "The Palace needs both the Ginzuishou and the manna of Earth to awaken its full power," Minako said while walking over to the obelisk to get a closer look. "That's what Serenity said. It was supposed to symbolize the alliance between the Moon Kingdom and the Golden Kingdom." And the Earth would provide no power until the Null Field started to fade. That wouldn't be for centuries. Makoto was still trying to get her head around that. They would be in here for a dozen lifetimes. "You know what this means, don't you?" Minako said, waking back to the edge of the dais. Makoto wasn't quite sure what she was referring to. "What do you mean?" Minako jumped back down to the ground. Makoto made sure she was in a position to catch her if she stumbled. The floor here was smoother than elsewhere, and none of them had gotten all their strength and coordination back yet. But Minako landed gracefully. "It means this really is the Palace we saw in the thirtieth century. This is the room we'll be in a thousand years from now when our former selves come to fight the Black Moon clan." Makoto took a few moments to let that sink in. She hadn't been giving any thought to the thirtieth century recently. "Pluto keeps telling us that's not a definite thing," Makoto said. "Think about what Endymion told us when we went into the future," Minako said. "The world will go into a cold sleep for a thousand years. Then Neo-Queen Serenity will awaken the world and rule it from a crystal palace somewhere near Tokyo." Having it spoon-fed to her like this, it was making a lot more sense. "Gods, Minako, it could all still happen. Nemesis, Black Lady, everything." "It's being set up just like he told us. Like it's all been planned." Minako's grim expression completed the thought without words. Makoto shook her heads slowly. "No, I can't believe it. Pluto couldn't do it." Minako's expression softened. "No, I don't believe it either. The point is, there's somebody else who might believe it." Makoto didn't even to say it. "I don't think Rei and Setsuna have even spoken since we teleported back here from Tokyo Tower." "I've talked to the others. Nobody but Hotaru and Serenity have really seen her. She's been staying in her room." "She was hit harder than most of us," Makoto said. She had been unconscious even longer than Serenity, and the teleport back here had nearly knocked her out again. Serenity had confided to Makoto she suspected Pluto had done some sort of temporal thing to help them, make time run slower around Tokyo Tower so that the crystals could spread further, or something. "She's still resting." "Or maybe she's trying to give Rei time to cool off." "Well, Rei's been looking ... okay." "You're right, she's under control. But she's smarter than me, Mako- chan. She's probably thought of the same things I have. Only she might not believe that it just happened this way." Makoto saw what Minako was getting at. She didn't want to even think it, but she forced herself to evaluate her friend honestly. Yes, she could see it happening. She could see Rei doing that. "Maybe we should talk to Serenity." Minako sighed. "I already have. She just said they need to sort it out by themselves." "That could mean one of them will be killed." "I don't think she believes that. It's like she has a ... a blind spot where Rei's concerned." "What do you think we should do?" "I really can't think of anything. Maybe Serenity's right and it'll just work out. Hell, maybe we're wrong and Pluto really did plan it all. I just don't know what to think." Makoto could see that she was getting upset. "Minako, are you really afraid that something's going to happen?" "Yeah. Makoto, I've made a lot of bad decisions lately, mostly because I didn't think things through properly. I'm trying to change that. I just don't want to mess up again." "Well, as far as I'm concerned, you've already done the right thing," Makoto said. "If you told Serenity what you told me, then you did exactly what a second in command is supposed to do. She's dealing with it in her way. If it was up to me I'd just march up to Rei and ask her whether she intends to harm Setsuna, just because that's the way I do things. If I were in charge that's exactly what I'd do. I don't know if it's the right answer. Maybe Serenity is just as unsure, I don't know. But I trust her." Minako managed a weak smile. "So do I." Makoto thought this place might be souring Minako's mood, it had bad associations. "Come on, why don't we go find the others and tell them about the exploring we've been doing? They're probably all wondering what's happened to us." They retraced their steps, and got to an elevator that took them straight up to the garden. But they got off a couple of levels below it. It was easier now that Mercury had started marking things. She had found a way to link her computer directly into the Palace. A combination of Serenity's sketchy knowledge and her own ingenuity was allowing her to control their environment somewhat. Like coaxing some real living quarters to grow out of the bare rooms they had found here. They had picked a cluster of them here under garden, so now everybody was sleeping on comfy beds again. It had just recently occurred to Makoto that they would be on a vegetarian diet for a very long time. As well as the fruit the garden had a variety of root vegetables and other things they were just starting to discover. Serenity had assured her that enough of the garden would escape dormancy, more than enough to sustain them. Near their quarters Mercury had conjured what could best be described as a common room. Makoto had actually watched some of it happen, Mercury touching a few keys on her computer and suddenly having furniture grow out of the floor and walls like living things. This one was just a round sunken conversation pit, a circular couch with a notch cut out of it, like a crescent moon. Ami, Haruka and Michiru were sitting together there. They returned Minako's cheerful greeting, but not very enthusiastically. Minako caught on to it pretty quickly too. "Hey, is something wrong?" "Endymion had trouble waking up today," Michiru said. "Serenity had to use the Ginzuishou to revive him." "Oh no!" Minako walked down into the crescent and stood before them. "I thought he had a few more days at least." "He does," Ami said. "But without a boost from the Ginzuishou he would barely be coherent even when awake. And Serenity can't keep doing that, it's too risky for him." "Where are they?" Makoto asked. When Ami hesitated, Michiru spoke. "They've chosen a room for him to lie in suspended animation." Minako gasped, her hands shot to her mouth. "Ami, you didn't ...?" "No," Ami said. "She's with him right now. When he's asleep, she will come tell me. Then I'll do it." So that was why Makoto had the impression they were sitting waiting for something. Makoto sat down. "That's awful, it coming so suddenly. We didn't even get a chance to say goodbye." "From his point of view it isn't goodbye," Haruka said. "As far as he's concerned, he's going to wake up tomorrow morning and we'll still be here." Except we'll be centuries old, Makoto thought. "How is she taking it?" And if anybody says 'with serenity' I'll kill them. "I think she's prepared herself for this day," Michiru said. "But however much she knows that they will meet again it still has to feel like losing him." "How long have you been waiting here?" Minako asked. "A few hours," Ami said. She smiled a bit. "Haruka and Michiru just stumbled upon me a while ago and asked why I looked so depressed." So she had waited here by herself without telling anybody. Makoto felt bad about having been out wandering around, but she still wanted to scold Ami. She still seemed to see not wanting to be alone as a weakness. "Do the others know?" "Serenity told Rei," Ami said. "Hotaru was with her." Makoto didn't need to ask where they were. This had to be very hard on Rei, she would be alone somewhere. And Hotaru would be with Setsuna, the one she usually went to when she was upset. "Ami, you should have called us instead of just waiting here by yourself," Minako said. It sounded like she felt the same way Makoto did. "It's okay. I was collating the data K'Theelm sent us." Minako looked up to heaven and gave an exasperated sigh. "Ami, you'll have centuries to do that." "It might take centuries to fully understand the phenomenon," Ami said. "Who knows, I may even be able to come up with a way to speed up its decay." "Well, just don't get obsessed by it." "Obsession is not necessarily a bad thing," Haruka said. "We have Ami's obsession with millennial doom prophecy to thank for saving humanity." Ami's face fell. "Well, one in one thousand of humanity anyway." "Ami," Minako said sternly. She continued more gently. "Remember what I told you. The living, not the dead." Ami smiled. "I know." "So what have you two been up to?" Haruka said. Minako smiled. "We found some cool places." Makoto let her sit down and tell everybody about it. They had found that the Palace visible above the ground was like the tip of an iceberg. Either that, or the Palace had sunk very deep roots into the earth. Most of the open spaces were still above ground. It would have been easy to get lost, there were thousands upon thousands of open areas of all sizes. The largest were the windowed ones, the garden and the ziggurat. The latter had a palace within a palace sitting on top of it when they had seen it in the thirtieth century. Right now its top was just a vast open space, the very space Saturn had first found Neo-Queen Serenity. They had also found something that they couldn't decide whether to call a lake or a reservoir. As Makoto expected, that really perked Ami and Michiru's interest. The talk died down when Neo-Queen Serenity entered the room. They all stood up, knowing what this must mean. She smiled at them, then walked up to the edge of the crescent pit and looked down at Ami. "He's asleep." Ami took a couple of steps closer. "Serenity, are you sure?" "Yes. We both agreed it's best to do it now." "I understand." Without another word, Ami left the room. "I'm sorry everyone," Serenity said. "I'm not going to be very good company right now. I'll be in my rooms for a while." "Serenity, are you sure you won't stay for a while?" Minako implored. She smiled warmly. "Thank you but no. I'm a bit tired. I'll try to make it for dinner." They had already gotten into the habit of eating dinner together in the garden. It helped anchor a daily routine in a world with no day and night. "I hope she's not keeping this bottled up for our benefit," Haruka said with barely suppressed frustration. "We know how she must feel, she doesn't need to hide it from us." "She's just a lot stronger now," Michiru said. "She probably thinks it's because of what her mother gave her, but I think it has more to do with herself." Makoto had her own idea about why Serenity was taking this so calmly. But she didn't say anything. ***** Everybody was gathered in the garden for dinner. The edges of the garden far away were already starting to fall under darkness. The area under the light from above would be getting smaller and smaller. It was more or less a picnic, or at least that was what Minako would call it. Makoto was having fun with her new toy, a makeshift barbecue using crystals that generated heat somehow. Some of these roots had a flavour and texture that if you used your imagination was like some sort of meat. Serenity hadn't been able to tell Makoto the names of any of the fruits or vegetables that grew here, so they were starting to try and decide what to name things. Minako hoped the result wasn't an indication of how hard it would be to come to a consensus when they were all advising Neo-Queen Serenity, ruler of earth. Well, it wasn't like they were in a hurry. Minako was happy to see that Setsuna was finally showing her face now. She looked a lot better than when she had virtually disappeared. They were all pretty much recovered from their ordeal at Tokyo Tower. But Ami, Hotaru and Rei had been examining them all daily and still said it would be days at least before they had fully recovered their abilities as Sailor Senshi. Not that it mattered, there was not a soul in the world to worry them now. Well, almost. She knew that Setsuna had been monitoring the airwaves with sensors that Ami and Serenity had helped her coax from the structure of the Palace and set up on top of the central spire. "Did you hear anything from that American ship today?" she asked Setsuna. "No," Setsuna said. "I suspect they've moved south. The ice must be getting treacherous even at this latitude now." "Do you think they might have spotted the Palace?" Makoto said. "I doubt it," Setsuna said. "I think they lost an aircraft trying to do a sortie over land yesterday. The winds are getting very treacherous, and with the snow they can't spot anything unless they're close to the ground." "I guess we can assume the Palace doesn't show up on radar," Haruka said. "Otherwise it would be pretty hard to miss." "I'm surprised they didn't come snooping around sooner," Rei said. "After all, it must have been obvious that the Null Field originated from somewhere in central Japan." "I suspect that was the Director's doing," Setsuna said. "He probably got the government to forbid any sorties, so the Americans held back until they were desperate enough not to care what the JSDF might do. Now the weather is driving them away." "It's too bad we can't tell them not to bother," Hotaru said. "Those poor men should be home with their families." "Hopefully that's where they'll be headed soon," Setsuna said. "Though they don't have much time. The temperatures are dropping even more rapidly now." "I finished those calculations," Ami said. "The temperature is going to more or less stabilize about a month from now. It'll be about minus ninety celsius. We'll actually be seeing carbon dioxide snow before then." "What will that look like?" Serenity asked. Minako was almost surprised to hear her speak, she had been very quiet today. "Like regular snow, I think." Ami said. "Not something you'd want to try and make a snowball out of though," Haruka said. Minako smiled. Somehow or other, they were all getting used to it. *It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine.* "I thought it would at least be another colour," Serenity said. "That would have been worth waiting for." "You won't have to wait very long," Ami said. "A couple of weeks or so." "No, I don't think so." Minako frowned. "What do you mean?" Serenity put down the crystal glass she had been drinking fruit juice from. She sat up and folder her hands in her lap. "Everyone, I've been thinking about something and I've come to a decision. Ami, tomorrow I want you to put me into cold sleep." Everyone was stunned to silence. It took a while for Minako to realize what she meant. She meant permanently. "Serenity," Rei said in a tremulous voice. "Why?" Serenity took just a moment to compose her thoughts. "I'm sorry, I really feel like I'm abandoning you all. You're my dear sisters and I love you more than I can say. If it were my own fate alone I was deciding, I would be overjoyed to spend a thousand years with you all. But I have to think of my husband as well. Endymion will be waking up a very long time from now. I want him to awaken to the wife he knew. Not to a stranger who has not seen him in centuries." Nobody spoke for a long while. Minako could see her own feelings reflected in everyone's faces, something like grief. To live without Usagi ... "I can't." Rei was controlling her trembles, and her voice was more or less steady. "Serenity, I couldn't live without you for even one lifetime. If you're going into cold sleep, I have to go with you." "I understand," Serenity said. "I thought you would say that." "Serenity, you must have known we would all feel the same way," Makoto said. "We've been kidding ourselves, we're not going to be spending hundreds of years huddling in a glass tower in the middle of an ice field. We'll all go into cold sleep." "We can't do that." They all looked to Setsuna. "It's Ami's modification to her own powers that allows the cold sleep. When she is the last one left, there will be nobody to put her into suspended animation. We would be condemning her to centuries spent alone. It would be unthinkable." "Oh God ..." Rei choked. "Ami, I didn't even think ..." "Rei," Ami said, quickly moving over and taking Rei's hand. "Calm down. It's okay." She turned to face Setsuna, she looked angry. "You didn't need to upset everybody like that. You should have asked me first. And I'm surprised you didn't think of the solution yourself." Setsuna frowned. "What solution?" Ami sighed. "The area effect version of the spell. I don't need the Ginzuishou for it, I can do it on a small scale myself. And I've already told you that the spell dissolves at anything over forty degrees celsius." The penny dropped and Setsuna let out a groan. "I'm sorry Ami, I could kick myself." "What is she talking about?" Rei asked. Ami caressed her hand. "It's simple. I shoot it straight up and it comes back down on me. And I set up a heat emitting crystal hooked to a timer." "Ami, wouldn't you do those two things in the other order?" They all stared at Serenity for a couple of seconds. Then everybody laughed, either hysterically or indulgently, Minako included. She didn't think it was that funny, but she hadn't realized just how the centuries to come had been looming over her like a curse. Now they seemed as light as a feather, just a bridge to be crossed with another of Ami's miracles. "I guess we're decided, then," Serenity said. They were feeling so much better they decided to all go skinny dipping in the reservoir thing Minako had found. Nobody seemed to buy that it should be called Lake Aino by right of discovery, but that was okay. ***** Only Setsuna knew it as a prayer tower. Compared to other wonders of the Palace it was unremarkable, a slim eight-sided tower rising twenty meters into the air, capped by a stylized castle. From just appearances it was notable more for its position than its form. It stood in the middle of an open space at the very top of the central spire, covered by the clear crystal pyramid that capped the spire. Setsuna had been coming here each day since they had discovered the place and she had realized what it was. Over the centuries she had paid homage to the spirit world in a hundred different ways, said prayers in a hundred different languages. But never had she thought to find a prayer tower fashioned after the one beside which she had sought communion with the Ancient Ones so many times in her youth. She knelt before the tower once again, as she had so long ago. But the sins she sought forgiveness for now were beyond anything that young woman in the Moon Kingdom could imagine. A dubious present erased to make way for what could be an equally dubious future. She came silently, Setsuna was not aware of her presence until she was quite near. But she was making no attempt to hide her presence. She came up close on Setsuna's left side and stood there. Setsuna did not look up at her. "I thought you might seek me out here." As she spoke, her voice became increasingly bitter. "You've really sewn it up nice and neat, haven't you? All in one fell swoop you've handed the world to her. You've eliminated all possible opposition and you've given her a palace to rule from. You even managed to arrange loyal subjects. Their last image upon falling asleep was her, and they will awaken to a world of her making. They will all worship her as a goddess whether she wants it or not. And all you had to do was wipe out five billion people." Setsuna looked up. Rei had a sword thrust through the belt of her robe, and the hilt of a dagger protruded from the front of the robe. Takada's blades. "Are you willing to hear the truth?" "Are you willing to speak it?" "Before the tower I can do nothing else." "Then speak." Setsuna faced the tower again. "Ten thousand years ago I was inducted into the order of the Guardians of Time. I found out that what they guarded was not time but a tear in time. How this tear came to be nobody knew, but in time they were able to fashion it into the Gate of Time and move through it. The Gate allowed generations of Guardians to see what they understood to be a variety of different futures for this world. Most of what we saw in those futures we had no way of understanding. But through long study, we were able to identify three futures whose probability seemed strong and whose history we could trace and understand. "The first was the Moon Kingdom triumphant, ruled by a great and terrible queen. She had eliminated even the possibility of pain and death from her realm. It was a horror beyond imagining. It was a world of soulless people who could not die, who would repeat the same meaningless acts until the end of time. "The second was a new kingdom that would arise ten thousand years after the fall of the Moon Kingdom. It was a kingdom of engineers who would move worlds and build new ones of their own design. Its dominion over nature was complete. But in all the worlds it created, there was not a single being that was even remotely human. "The third was a kingdom to arise a thousand years after the fall of the embryonic kingdom of engineers. Its main legacy would be from the Moon Kingdom, but it would also draw from the world of the engineers. It was ruled over by a queen whose rage against those who would hurt the innocent was terrible to behold, but whose capacity for mercy seemed infinite." Rei waited just long enough to be sure that Setsuna was done. "Are you telling me that you also engineered the fall of the Moon Kingdom?" "We allowed it to happen." "Had it never occurred to you to share your knowledge? Had it never occurred to you to tell Queen Serenity of the direction her kingdom was in danger of going? Had it never occurred to you that she might be willing and able to do something about it?" "We saw no future in which that was possible." "Of course you didn't!" Rei exploded. "It wasn't possible because you never tried to make it possible!" "That is the contradiction of the Gate of Time," Setsuna said. "We can only see the future built by those who have not seen it. That is why those who saw the Gate were kept few, and they sought out points where small interventions could push the world towards a new path. A path set by those who did not see its true destination." "You know what the Gate of Time really is?" Rei asked. "It's an Oracle. It's just like the fire I used in a temple. It gives me glimpses and I act on them. But it doesn't give me carte blanche. I can't just go kill someone because I saw a vision of him killing two other people. I can only punish people for what they've already done." "And is that what you are here to do?" "What do you think would be a suitable punishment for the willful murder of five billion people? Oh, excuse me, four billion. I forgot, one billion of them were already dead. And most of the rest were probably as good as dead anyway, there was bound to be a nuclear war or something. I guess we won't count them either." "Rei, you don't need to tell me what I've done. We both know that I've brought us to this point and I would do the same again. I can think of nobody with better right to judge me than you. Tell me what you would have me do." The dagger clattered to the floor in front of her. Setsuna understood immediately. It occurred to her that her posture of prayer was the same as somebody in the ancient past of Rei's country would take for ritual suicide. Setsuna looked up to Rei in disbelief. She gestured towards the tower. "Here ....?" Rei unsheathed her sword. "Here. Now." She looked at the dagger for a long while. Strangely enough, she felt no fear. Her life ... no, her many lives had never been her own. Her existence had always been a means towards and end. Now that end was all but assured. Perhaps this is what would seal it. Briefly, her thoughts went out to Hotaru, the only one who would truly mourn her passing. But her pain would be brief as compared to the joy waiting for her in the beautiful new world they would help their queen make. "Very well." She unsheathed the dagger and took the hilt firmly in both hands. She raised it slowly to her throat. "No. That's not what it's for." Setsuna shuddered. She had been almost in a trance, pushing herself through the screaming survival instincts that had been striving to bar her. She looked up at her executioner. Rei pointed. "Your hair is in my way." It took a few seconds for her hands to become steady again. She gathered her long hair behind her, and pulled the dagger through it. The sharp blade cut easily, and the hair spilled on the floor around her. She sheathed the dagger, set it down and folded her hands in front of her. She heard the sword being sheathed again. Rei walked in front of her, bent down and picked up the dagger. She stepped back and placed it back into the front of her robe. Setsuna looked up into her cold eyes. "Rei, is it your intention to mock me?" There was no bitterness in her voice, just disappointment. "It was my intention to convince myself that you are willing to take responsibility for what you've brought about." "And have I convinced you?" She ignored the question. "Right now Ami is drawing up her master plan for how we're going to get through the next five hundred years or a thousand years or however long it takes this Null Field to disappear. She's got all sorts of automated timers and such planned to wake her up every hundred years so that she can check up on things. It's all very clever but the fact is there are a thousand things that could go wrong. Never mind that she's working with magic and technology she barely understands. There's also the things we can't plan for. We've found remnants of old enemies holed up underground before. There could be more. There's a whole galaxy of planets out there, we could get unfriendly visitors. The Null Field could suddenly do something different. The Palace could suddenly do something we didn't anticipate. The simple fact is, we'll all be lying in here unconscious and helpless." Setsuna had already figured out where this was leading. "You want me to watch over everybody." "Now tell me whether you think you can do it." "I will do it." After a few seconds, Rei bowed. "I apologize for intruding on your prayers." She turned to go. "Rei?" She stopped and looked back at Setsuna. "I have every intention of carrying out your wish. But Serenity has already told us that even in its semi-dormant state the Palace has means of sensing danger and protecting us. It will be child's play for Ami to tap into those mechanisms and have us woken up at the first sign of danger. You truly believe that I deserve to die and you have no reason to spare my life." "Are you asking me why? It's very simple. Sometime in the future the two most wonderful people in the world will have a beautiful pink-haired daughter. One day she will count you among her dearest friends. That's reason enough. "But the fact is, Serenity would weep for you. And I wouldn't make her cry for anything." She turned and walked away. Setsuna sat and thought about the long road ahead. So her life would be a means towards an end once again. That was nothing new. ***** Usagi had wrestled ghosts before. She had been deluged with them on the day she had woken to her former life, woken to the memories of Princess Serenity. So it was familiar territory she tread on now. It was more intense this time, the ghosts could bubble to the surface at any moment. They were not individuals that she could identify, but rather just impressions of all the people who had touched her mother Queen Serenity, all the people who had helped make her what she was. They hovered like her conscience, convening in committee and gently pushing her in the right direction. Words had come to her unbidden, and she had taken action with no conscious thought. But she was fully aware of the process now. She still did not completely understand the ghosts and the rules by which they worked. But she could judge their words when they spoke, decide to make them her own words, or not. For the most part they guided her true. But they were harsh in judgement, where she was not. They would have her rule by decree, where she would win trust through compassion. They could guide her, but they would not rule her. From the top of the vast ziggurat she looked out into the utter blackness around her, master of the Palace and all that surrounded it, keeper of the Earth and its future. She took in a breath and spoke the words in a soft but clear voice. "I am Tsukino Usagi." Her last and greatest battle finally done, it was time to join her husband. With a thought, she opened the portal in the floor which she had not known to be there the first time she had been on this spot. She stepped over it and was instantly overcome by a feeling of weightlessness. She floated down. A corridor and another elevator took her to the place she must visit first. The rooms they had thought to live in for the next thousand years and beyond. Now only one of them would be occupied. She came to that one and bid the crystal doors to make the gentle chiming noise Ami had taught them to do. She had to smile. The sound would not have been out of place as a doorbell of somebody's home, it seemed so out of place here. The doors opened and Setsuna bid her to enter. "You're on your way now, Serenity?" "Yes." "Pleasant dreams." Serenity took her hand. "Setsuna, are you really sure about this?" "My queen, we've already talked about this at length. I am the one best suited to the task. I've spent longer times alone in the void. I have long since built defenses against the madness that could bring." She smiled. "I promise you, I'll be the same person I am now when you awaken." "I'm glad. I would miss you." She reached up and ran her hand lightly once through Setsuna's short hair, which was now styled something like the way Uranus wore hers. "I hope you'll let this grow back. It looks fine on Haruka, but somehow it's just not you." They both laughed. "I daresay I'll have more than enough time to grow it back." Serenity leaned forward and kissed her. "Promise me that if you get lonely you'll wake me." "I promise." She had resolved not to say goodbye to any of them. "See you later." "See you later." She walked over to the next set of rooms where she had asked her other friend to wait. She had thought it best this way, that they be separate. They had resolved what was between them, and Serenity knew that what had happened to change Setsuna's appearance and change her fate was part of that. She could see it would take a while for the bad feelings to resolve themselves, she would have her work cut out for her in the future. But Rei trusted Setsuna now, trusted her to watch over them. That was something Serenity could work with and nurture. Rei had asked to be the last, the last save Ami of course, to directly follow Serenity. Ami had encased the others over the past couple of days. Now it was their turn. Rei answered her call immediately, like she had been hovering around the door. "Hi Rei-chan." "Hi. Ready to go?" "Yes." Serenity walked in and they joined hands. "I wish you would tell me what's bothering you." Rei smiled weakly. "I'm not sure why I'm making such a big deal about this. Ami keeps telling us it will seem just like waking up tomorrow morning. I guess it just seems unnatural somehow. Like I'm cheating time. It's silly, I'm the one who asked to do this." Serenity stroked her cheek. "It's not silly. I'm nervous too. I'm thinking about how the world will have changed when I wake up. And about all the work that I'll have to do. To fix what's been done." She could see that had struck a chord. "I'm not sure where I'll even begin, but with everybody's help I know we can do it." Rei seemed to know that she had failed to hide her anxiety. "Minako keeps telling us to count the living. I think that's good advice. But I can't stop thinking of the dead. We'll be ... I'm sorry, but to me it's going to look like a world of corpses and lost souls." Serenity didn't want her friend to be going into her long sleep in this state. She decided to play her trump card. "Rei, I want to share a secret with you. It's something I've only told Endymion, but I'm sure he'd like you to know too." She took Rei's hand, guided it to her abdomen and pressed it there. She winked. The look of astonishment on Rei's face showed that she understood the meaning. "It's her. I'm not sure how, but I know that it's her. It's the real reason I'm going into cold sleep. I know she must grow up in a lonely world, but she deserves to at least have her father with her." "Usagi-chan ..." Rei reached out and hugged her tightly. They stood like that for some time. When Serenity looked in her eyes again, she saw the joy and hope she had been praying to see. "I think Ami-chan knows too, but she hasn't said anything. She's getting more and more devious, I think Minako has been a bad influence on her." She cradled Rei's face and kissed her. "Rei, let the new life growing in me give you hope." Rei nodded, her eyes misty. "It has. Thank you." Serenity stepped back and waved casually. "See you soon." "Baka." Serenity moved to her final stopping point before heading to the place where it would happen. The doors to Ami's apartment opened. "Sorry to keep you waiting, Ami-chan." Ami stepped out into the corridor. "Are you ready?" "Yes." ***** Pluto stood in the vast entrance hall. She wasn't sure what had drawn her here today. The excuse she was using was that the sensors Ami had helped her set up had been giving intermittent alarms for the past hour. They were little blips of energy near the Palace, but nothing that showed up for more than a second. Ami had warned her that she would have to gradually adjust their sensitivity, learn the right levels that would tune out the background noise. Not that there was likely to be anything turning up at the door. As Ami had predicted, the temperature was starting to stabilize already. Carbon dioxide snow had been fluttering down over the past few days. By now she and the plants in the garden were the only living things on the surface of the planet. Only creatures deep in the ocean that took their warmth from the earth and not the sun would still be clinging to life. Well, that was not quite true. She knew of others who had their own dark citadels to retreat into. Others who had magic both old and new that would sustain them through the centuries of darkness. Others waiting for the return of the light. The state of the Palace had stabilized as well. A few of the key rooms like this one were more brightly lit, but most of the rooms and corridors glowed with just enough light to see by. As Serenity had predicted, just the centre of the garden remained alive under a narrow beam of warm light cast from the crystal ceiling far above. The spaces in which she would be spending the next few centuries were few indeed. She would not be idle. There was much yet to be learned about the Palace. Ami had showed her how to use her marvellous computer, and how Serenity had helped her link it to the Palace. Setsuna had promised to wake her if she needed help or wanted to consult with her. But she doubted she would be doing that. Certainly Ami was better suited for this sort of research, but Setsuna was by no means helpless. In its current state there was little the Palace could actually do save provide her with the necessities of life. But they had already uncovered tantalizing pieces of great treasure troves of knowledge hidden in Palace, a legacy from the Silver Millennium. Ami had tasked her to try and find anything she could about the Null Field. She rather doubted there would be anything. Classified information, as it were. Setsuna walked along the huge double doors, still marvelling at how the Palace shrugged off the deep freeze that surrounded it. Even the windows that faced the outside were warm to the touch, and no snow, the water variety or otherwise, clung to it. Looking from above she had seen that even the plaza in front was clear. She touched the door, which was also warm. Another gift from the people who had tamed the torrid days and freezing nights of the moon. There was a knock at the door. Behind the shock that nearly stopped her heart came despair. *No, I couldn't be going mad already.* It came again, the thick crystal door ringing like a great bell, the sound barely audible but deep and unmistakable. She willed the computer into existence and opened it with trembling hands. She called up the front sensors. One person. Some low-level magical energy. It hadn't triggered an alarm because it hadn't been considered a threat. Magic? That wasn't possible, not under the Null Field. Only the Senshi who were linked to other celestial bodies could draw on their powers. From the beginning they had agreed that much as it pained them they would have to turn away any seeking sanctuary in the Palace. It could only sustain a handful of people in its current state, and anyone brought in would be condemned to grow old and die in a prison surrounded by darkness. Thankfully, nobody had come. Until now. She couldn't bear it. She had to find out. Setsuna transformed into Pluto and brandished the Garnet Rod. She gestured for the doors to open. They swung in. There wasn't nearly as much mist as she had thought there would be. Somehow the Palace was keeping the frigid air at bay. A figure came in between the partially opened doors, shrouded in the mist. Pluto willed the doors to shut behind it. The mist cleared. Pluto lowered the Garnet Rod from the defensive position she had been holding, too stunned for words. Daniel smiled. "Thanks. It's a bit nippy out there, even with the heat spell." Almost without thought Pluto phased her talisman out of sight. "Daniel ... I thought you had been in Tokyo." "I was," Daniel said. "It's embarrassing, I'd even forgotten about that ward spell Serenity put on me. It's a bit weak these days, it took this long to break through Mercury's crystal." Pluto shook her head. "It's snowing carbon dioxide outside. You should be dead." "I nearly was," Daniel said. "Barely had time to get the heat spell up." Then it came to her. "Your magic. You draw power from the moon." "Serenity taught me the trick. I can't draw more than a trickle, but it was enough." "Daniel ..." she approached him and they embraced. "Thank goodness." She stepped back. "You're freezing!" "A heat spell only does so much. But I can still feel my toes, so I guess that's good." "You walked all the way here. You must be exhausted." "Well, I could do with something to drink if you've got it to spare." "Of course, let's go to the garden." She took his arm and they started to walk. "Are the others in cold sleep?" Daniel asked. "Yes, days ago. How did you know?" "They're young. The thought of centuries in this place would terrify them." Setsuna chuckled. "Are you saying it wouldn't terrify you?" "No, I think it will be fun." The meaning registered. Setsuna stopped walking and looked into his face. "Daniel, you don't have to worry about that. I can easily reawaken Mercury and have her put you in cold sleep. I may have to wake up Mars and get her advice, but I'm sure we can find some way around the ward." "No, that won't be necessary. I'd rather stick around and keep you company." She shook her head. "Daniel, no. I can't let you-" He raised his finger, brought it near her lips. "Setsuna, this is going to be a very long relationship. Let's not start it with an argument." It shocked her, finding how badly she wanted what he was offering. "Daniel, it could be centuries." "So much the better." His glib manner had vanished. As if on a hidden signal, they moved together. The kiss was one that had been waiting for ten thousand years. It lasted an appropriate length of time. When it finally ended they just stood there and held each other. "Setsuna?" he said softly. "Yes?" "What the hell did you do to your hair?" The End Postscript As in my previous stories, I did not decide on a title until after I had outlined the story (I tend to start with fairly detailed outlines, and I rarely make any major deviations from them). It simply occurred to me that events were being driven by a set of people who all had very deep secrets of one sort or another. Yes, the Order is essentially a cross between the 'men in black' of urban legend and the Dark Guard of Supernatural Beast City. The bit about Rei's tattoo was inspired by a painting by Naoko Takeuchi. It is a group shot of all the Senshi in black evening gowns. Rei's scandalously low neckline reveals the tiny tattoo. Yes, in another reality, the young boy Akira could have become *that* Akira. The ending was inspired by what is probably the shortest horror story on record, which I can quote verbatim: *The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock at the door...* I couldn't resist. Note: this story also contains one character created by S.M. Stirling as noted below. I didn't want to mention this in the preface because I wanted his 'cameo' appearance to be a surprise :-) Dramatis Personae Note: Japanese names are given family names first, for no other reason than that reversing them ruins the 'pun names' that Takeuchi-sensei gave the Sailor Senshi :-) The Sailor Senshi Tsukino Usagi - Sailor Moon Mizuno Ami - Sailor Mercury Aino Minako - Sailor Venus Hino Rei - Sailor Mars Kino Makoto - Sailor Jupiter Tomoe Hotaru - Sailot Saturn Tenou Haruka - Sailor Uranus Kaiou Michiru - Sailor Neptune Meiou Setsuna - Sailor Pluto Other characters taken from Bishojou Senshi Sailor Moon Chiba Mamoru - Tuxedo Mask/Endymion Oosaka Naru - Usagi's childhood friend Umino Gurio - Naru's boyfriend Urawa Ryou - Ami's boyfriend Nagashima Saori - Mamoru's former classmate (She appeared in the fourth season of the TV series. I made up the family name, as far as I know it was never revealed). Kenji - Usagi's father Ikuko - Usagi's mother Shingo - Usagi's brother Queen Serenity - mother of Princess Serenity, Usagi's former incarnation Rei's grandfather (as far as I know we never find out his name) The Ancients Himiko - the Matriarch Kaori - Himiko's granddaughter, head of a large household near Tokyo Shoji - Kaori's son Yui - Shoji's girlfriend Akechi - Shoji's friend Hitomi - Yui's friend Megumi - Kaori's sister Akira - Megumi's son Aiko - Himiko's most gifted precognitive The Order Note: These are all assumed names. Their real names are classified :-) Takada Hitoshi - acting director of the recently formed Tokyo office Allen Smith - agent from the New York office John Brown - director of the Hidden branch Noriko - Takada's assistant Lafarge - agent from the New York office (character from S.M Stirling's novel 'Drakon') Ichiro Hori - Buddhist priest The Refugees Jeneth (assumed name: Jennifer Constantine) - the healer Thetan (assumed name: Thom Russell) - the monk K'Theelm (assumed name: Tony Harth) - the engineer Other characters of my own making Cyrus (latest assumed name: Daniel Churchland) - the immortal Miho - shrine maiden One might suspect from all the background I've set up in this story that I plan on creating a "fanfic universe" for lack of a better term, a framework within which to place further stories. To be honest, I have no idea whether I plan to write any more stories in this series. Time will tell. I hope everyone has enjoyed what I've written so far. If you've read up to the end of this sixteen chapter (whew!) monstrosity, I guess it must have at least kept your interest. My warmest thanks to all those who wrote to me about my previous stories. Best regards to all my fellow Sailor Moon fans. Ken Wolfe Ken_Wolfe@mbnet.mb.ca --------------9C4473543--