For author's notes and disclaimers, see the prelude posted yesterday.


	PART ONE: Fushigi na Crystal Palace

	Chapter Four

	"Okay, so let me get this straight," Shingo said. "My sister's not
only Sailor Moon, she's also the reincarnation of a princess who
lived on the moon thousands of years ago."
	Saturn nodded. "That's right."
	"And some evil army went up to the moon and killed everyone, and her
mother killed herself to send the princess and the Sailor Senshi into
the future?"
	"Basically." 
	"Well, that makes about as much sense as anything else," Shingo
sighed. He rubbed his forehead. "I'm getting a headache from all
this."
	Saturn giggled. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it," She banished
the Glaive and sat down beside Shingo, who blinked.
	"Hotaru-chan?"
	"Hai?"
	"Where the hell does that thing *go* anyway?"
	Saturn blinked. "The Silence Glaive? I'm not really sure. I just
summon it when I need it and send it away when I don't." 
	"It goes into a subspacial pocket," a new voice intruded. The teens
looked up to see Sailor Mercury walking towards them, lights flashing
inside her visor as she furiously punched away on her computer,
scanning the walls of the palace.
	Shingo blinked. "Ami-san? Is that you?" 
	Mercury glanced at him and smiled. "Hai, Shingo-kun. I believe you
know all of the Senshi, except the other Outers..." she gestured at
Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto, who were gathered around a pair of
thrones which had appeared in the center of the room. Seated upon the
thrones were a dazed-looking Serenity and a calm but wary Endymion.
Pluto was telling him something.
	Shingo looked around the room. Sailor Mars...Rei?...was talking to
the elder Hino, and trying to wake up Yuuichirou, who was still out
of it. Venus...Minako, he realized...was helping Naru and Umino to
revive the elder Tsukinos. He felt guilty that he wasn't over there
with them, but he decided there was no help for it. Motoki and the
white-haired man who had been standing with Pluto were seeing to the
other guests who hadn't fled the temple when the transformation
began. He couldn't get a clear look at them, but one of the women
seemed familiar. Finally, he watched as Jupiter...Makoto, it had to
be Makoto...tapped the walls of the sealed chamber. As she did so, a
crevice suddenly appeared in the smooth surface. The crevice widened,
letting light shine through. Shingo realized this must be a doorway. 
	The multiple surprises of the past weeks had left Shingo feeling as
though he could probably handle just about anything, especially after
what happened during the wedding. Therefore, he shouldn't have even
blinked at what happened next.
	Which is why it was extremely funny to Saturn when he completely
freaked out.

	*****

	One irate black cat and one apprehensive white cat stalked through
the newly-opened doorway. "Alright, what's going on up here?" Luna
growled.
	"LUNA TALKS!?" Shingo shouted from where he and Saturn were sitting.
The other Senshi blinked at him, and Saturn collapsed in a fit of
giggles.
	Luna glanced over at Shingo, who was pale with horror, and realized
that the room was full of civilians, and a few of them were awake.
She smacked herself with a paw. "Would someone mind explaining this?"
she said, deciding that trying to cover for her slip would be
pointless. She could practically feel her patience wearing thin.
	"Calm down, Luna," Artemis said. Luna swiped at him with her claws,
and he ducked.
	Shingo started shaking badly, his eyes wider than dinner plates, all
the blood drained from his face. "Oh hell, two talking cats...I can't
deal with this," he said. Saturn put a reassuring arm around him. 
	"There, there...it's alright, Shingo-kun...they're very friendly,
they won't hurt you..." Saturn whispered into his ear.
	"So much for the decorum of the throne room," Uranus quipped aside
to Neptune, who snickered. 
	Luna stalked right up to the thrones, and her eyes widened as it
finally registered who was sitting there. "S-serenity," she gasped.
"Endymion..."
	Artemis seated himself near where Pluto stood. "I can't wait to hear
this," he mused.
	Serenity had been silent ever since her parents fainted. Her eyes
had glazed over somewhat after that, and she had remained that way
ever since. Now, she seemed lucid again, if somewhat in shock. She
looked around, then down at herself, and gasped. "I'm...I'm
really...Serenity..." 
	Endymion took her hand, and smiled at her. "Yes, you are, my love." 
	She stared at him. "Ma...mamo-chan..."
	He shook his head. "Endymion," he corrected her. "Chiba Mamoru and
Tsukino Usagi are gone now."
	"But...no! That's not...I mean, I know who I am...I'm still...oh,
I'm so confused..." Serenity seemed on the verge of tears. 
	Pluto stepped forward, and bowed. "Your Majesty, I believe I can
explain," she said. 
	Serenity looked up. "Pluto? What's going on here?"
	"There was a propechy in the Silver Millenium," Pluto began. "when
the Crown Princess is wed on her eighteenth birthday, she ascends the
throne, becoming Queen, and gaining full control over the power of
the Ginzuishou." She paused, letting that sink in, then continued,
"You have wed on your eighteenth birthday, and therefore have now
ascended the throne."
	Serenity blinked. "But...the Silver Millenium ended thousands of
years ago!" she protested.
	Pluto shook her head. "It doesn't matter. The daughter of the last
reigning Queen has fulfilled the prophecy, and holds the crystal. I
know it's hard for you to understand, but your reign has
begun...Neo-Queen Serenity."
	"But, but...I don't even feel like Serenity! I still feel like,
well, like me!" the confused young ruler declared. "I mean, there's
something different, I can feel that, like when I became Sailor Moon
for the first time, but..." She clutched her head. "This is all so
weird...!"
	Endymion embraced her. "Serenity," he said softly. "You remember the
times you turned into your past self, right?" She nodded. "It felt
like you were experiencing things through someone else's soul, didn't
it?"
	"I...I suppose that's a way of putting it," Serenity said.
	"But it doesn't feel that way now, does it?"
	She shook her head. "No...I mean, it just feels like I know new
stuff I didn't know before. But I'm still me, I mean, I'm still
Usagi..."
	Endymion smiled. "And I'm still Mamoru, yet we aren't the same
people now." He paused. "You feel the soul of your past life, don't
you?"
	Serenity nodded. "Yes..." Her brow furrowed. "It's like...it's like
the times I turned into Serenity, but I'm still me and not her..."
Her eyes widened. "Wait...you mean I'm both, right now? At the same
time?"
	Endymion nodded, grinning. "You understand now. The soul of Princess
Serenity has merged completely with your own soul...as has mine with
Endymion. We're them now, and they're us."
	"Oh...I see," Serenity said, nodding thoughtfully. She then looked
around the room, noticing that many of those present were gathered in
small knots, either reviving the people who had fainted, or talking
quietly, or examining the building. "This is..."
	"The Crystal Palace," Pluto said. "Your palace, Serenity-sama." 
	"Don't do that, please," Serenity said. "You're older than I am, it
isn't right."
	Pluto smiled. "I was older than your mother, the Queen, also," she
said. 
	Serenity giggled. "I suppose you would have been, at that." She
looked around slowly, wonderously. "It's so beautiful...how big is
it?" she wondered.
	Pluto shrugged. "We don't know," she admitted. "Nobody's gone
outside the throne room yet." 
	"But there's a lot of people *outside* who'd like to get *in*,"
Artemis said. "You should see the crowd on the street..."
	Serenity's eyes widened. "Oh, kami-sama! The temple! Poor Rei-chan,
poor ojiisan..."
	"It's quite alright, Your Majesty," a gentle voice said from behind
her. Serenity turned to see Sailor Mars smiling at her, with her
grandfather standing beside her. "We're both honored to have this
beautiful palace on our temple grounds."
	"Besides," Hino-san said, "the old place needed fixing up anyway."
He winked. Mars and Serenity giggled. 
	"But...I don't understand why this happened," Serenity said. 
	"I explained the prophecy--" Pluto began, but Serenity cut her off.
	"Not that, I get that now. I mean this. The palace. Why here, why
now? I thought this wasn't supposed to happen for almost a thousand
years..."
	Pluto shrugged. "To be honest, Your Majesty, I don't understand
either," she said. "Unless the tale our future selves told about the
world falling into a cold sleep and how Crystal Tokyo came to be was
a fabrication..." She frowned thoughtfully. "Come to think of
it...the future version of myself might have told you that tale so
that you wouldn't know this was going to happen," she mused. 
	"Is it something you'd do?" Uranus asked. Neptune elbowed her in the
ribs.
	"Yes, it is," Pluto said with a wry smile. "And it's something I
probably *will* do a thousand years from now." 
	"In any case," Luna interrupted, "the fact remains that the palace
exists...but I expected it to be a lot bigger," she added.
	"It probably will be, someday," Pluto said. "Even Rome wasn't built
in a day. I know, I was there." 
	Neptune groaned. "Pluto, no offense, but your sense of humor is
beginning to get on my nerves." The others snickered. 
	Saturn walked over to the throne, with Shingo. Both bowed. Serenity
grimaced. "Don't *do* that," she said. "Shingo-kun, are you alright?"
	Shingo nodded. "Yeah...I'm fine. Just a little startled." He glanced
nervously at Luna, who did her best to look like an innocent kitten. 
	"You looked pretty petrified there for a minute," Uranus said. 
	"Uranus, please don't tease him about it," Serenity said.
"Shingo-kun...has Saturn filled you in on things?"
	"Hai, Your Majesty," Shingo grinned. Serenity glared at him, and he
broke into a fit of laughter. The young queen put her hand to her
forehead. "I thought people were supposed to *respect* their queen,"
she moaned, causing everyone in earshot to collapse in hysterical
laughter. After a moment, she joined in as well.

	*****

	Three more police vehicles arrived on the scene as the Tokyo police
officers already there worked hard to push back the swarms of people
who had flocked to get a closer look at the enormous crystal tower
jutting from the former location of Hikawa Shrine. "Please stand at
the requested distance away from the object," a lieutenant shouted
through a megaphone. "There may be unknown danger present. It is
unsafe for the civilian populace to approach the object."
	"Lieutenant," a young officer said, approaching him. "We've finished
examining the object."
	The lieutenant nodded. "What did you find?"
	"Not much," the officer said, shrugging. "The temple that was there
before has been completely transformed. A lot of the structure of the
temple itself is still visible." He pointed to the tall crystalline
arch which stood over the steps. "See what I mean? Wherever this came
from, it...absorbed, I guess, the temple."
	"Hmm...yes, I see," the older officer nodded thoughtfully. "Anything
else?"
	"There's no sign of the ground being damaged around the object," the
officer commented. "We already knew it didn't come from...up there,"
he mused, earning a sharp look from the lieutenant. "Now we know it
didn't come up out of the ground either."
	"Odd. Where could it have come from? Something that big just doesn't
appear out of nowhere."
	"We went over it thoroughly," the officer added. "There is no
doorway or opening of any sort."
	"There must be one," the lieutenant said. "How could our witnesses
have gotten out otherwise?"
	"We don't know," the officer said. "Although Officer Kawamura claims
to have seen two cats disappear into the structure..."
	"Two what!?" the lieutant exclaimed.
	"Cats. One black, one white, both with crescent moon bald patches on
their foreheads," the officer repeated. "According to Kawamura, they
walked up to the front of the structure, there was a bright light,
and they walked right through it." 
	"That's odd," the older policeman commented. "Alright, I want you
and the others to keep probing that thing, looking for a way in." He
paused. "Was there anything up there that appeared to pose a threat?"
	The cop shook his head. "No, nothing. Actually, the whole thing is
really beautiful...peaceful as well."
	The lieutenant raised an eyebrow. "Peaceful?"
	"It's like...you know the sense of peace you get when you visit a
shrine? It feels like that up there, only concentrated."
	The lieutant rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "You know," he said
slowly, "the calmest witness we had was a priest who came from inside
there. A Catholic priest," he added. "It's funny, he seemed ashamed
of himself for getting out of there." He chuckled.
	"Really? What did he see?" the younger officer asked.
	"Claims to have seen an angel. A real, honest-to-God angel." 
	"Strange. I wonder what a Catholic priest was doing in a Shinto
temple?"
	"Oh, he and the old priest who runs...ran Hikawa Shrine were
performing a wedding ceremony," the lieutenant said. "Said something
about a mixed Shinto and Western wedding." He frowned. "Funny
thing...nobody's seen a bride or a groom around here, or the old
priest...the guy says the bridesmaids and the bride's family are all
missing too."
	"Maybe they're still in there," the younger cop supplied helpfully.
	"Possible." A pause. "Let's just hope they're alright up there, if
they are..."

	*****

	An hour later, everyone had been awakened, and filled in on what was
going on. To say it shocked them would be an understatement,
especially when they were told the part about Neo-Queen Serenity.
Except, that is, for four of the guests who hadn't batted an eye...in
fact, Shingo began to suspect there was something strange about these
women, but he couldn't figure out what. Even the white-haired man,
whose name he still didn't know, thought there was something odd
about them, and in fact thought they had never actually been
unconscious.
	Once everyone had been filled in, Pluto wrangled the Senshi all into
a more or less formal arrangement in the room, and grouped all the
civilians, including Serenity's family, together in two rows of seven
at a respectful distance from the thrones, upon which sat Serenity
and Endymion. Luna and Artemis sat beside Serenity and Endymion,
respectively.
	"I know there's supposed to be some kind of formality in here,"
Serenity began, "but right now I'd be too uncomfortable with it, so
we're not going to stand on ceremony." She paused, thinking about
what to say next. "To be honest, I'm not really sure what I'm
supposed to do now." She blushed lightly. "Gomen...this is still very
new to me."	
	"Your Majesty," Mercury said, "I have some data on the palace which
my computer has just finished analyzing."
	Serenity nodded. "Let's hear it."
	"It seems that the Ginzuishou did not actually create the Palace. It
simply summoned it."
	"Summoned it?" Endymion asked.
	"According to my data," Mercury elaborated, "during the...ascension,
there was a great deal of spatial and subspatial fluctuation." At the
blank stares she received, she simplified, "The Palace itself was
already constructed, but pieces of it were hidden somewhere on Earth,
as well as deep within the moon, and some parts were even hidden in a
pocket dimension." She continued to manipulate her computer. "The
temple was transformed by the Palace, not by the Ginzuishou."
	"By the palace?" Mars asked.
	"Hai. The palace itself is generating power readings which are off
the scale. It's as though the entire palace is a magical power
plant." She was silent for a moment longer. "The power of the Palace
is on a different wavelength than that of the Ginzuishou, and
probably not as great, because I can't even get a reading on the
crystal," she continued, "but this palace is easily generating enough
energy to power itself and any defenses it might have." 
	"So what you're saying," said the man Shingo didn't recognize, "is
that the Crystal Palace is completely self-sufficient?"
	Mercury nodded. "Right. As far as I can tell, it's even creating its
own air. This palace could support itself and anyone inside it even
in space." 
	"Then that's one less thing we have to worry about," Endymion
concluded.
	Luna cleared her throat softly. "The next order of business should
be a decision about who's going to stay here and who's going to
leave," she said.
	Serenity nodded. "Right." She looked out over the small group of
people before her. "I'm not going to impose anything on any of you,"
she said. "I know this is as unusual to you as it is to me." She
paused. "Does everyone understand the situation right now?"
	The group murmured softly for a moment, and finally Umino spoke up.
"You're the queen of this palace, and right now that's the only thing
in your domain." He paused. "But if what I've been told is true," he
continued, "you eventually intend to extend your reign over at least
Japan, probably further." 
	Pluto nodded from where she stood. "An excellent summary," she
commented.
	"Right," Serenity agreed. "If anybody is uncomfortable with that,
feel free to leave at any time. All I ask is that you not reveal
anything you've seen or heard in here to the people outside."
	"Keep in mind," Pluto added, "that if you choose to remain within
the Palace, you must swear your absolute loyalty to Serenity-sama."
	"I tell you what," Serenity said, smiling gently. "I'll give you all
some time to talk it over. This is an important choice you have to
make, I don't expect you to make it suddenly." She glanced around.
"Pluto..."
	"Hai, Serenity-sama?" the eldest Senshi replied, bowing in
acknowledgement. 
	"I think it'd probably be a good idea if we took a look around the
palace," the young queen said. "We don't even know how many rooms
there are, or what kind of rooms, or anything except that it's got a
lot of power." 
	Pluto nodded. "An excellent idea, Your Majesty," she agreed. 
	Serenity smiled. "Alright...minna, please remain in the throne room
and consider your decision while my Senshi explore the Palace." 
	Pluto turned to address the other Sailor Senshi. "Go in pairs.
Report back here when you're finished," she instructed.
	The Senshi all bowed to Their Majesties, and paired off, headed for
numerous hidden exits Mercury had located earlier. 
	"What about you, Usa...I mean, Serenity-sama?" Shingo asked.
	"The Queen must remain in the throne room for now," Luna said before
Serenity could reply. "It's for her own safety."
	Endymion nodded. "After all, we don't know the layout of the palace,
and there are a lot of panicked people loitering on the street," he
agreed. "If Serenity wandered outside by accident and were to be
mobbed..."
	"Which reminds me," Artemis said, "we're going to need to establish
a palace guard besides the Sailor Senshi, in case any rubberneckers
manage to get in by accident. It's not likely to happen, but you
never know..."
	Luna looked over the fourteen possible subjects of the Crystal
Millenium. "Hmmm..."

	*****

	The dark entity was frustrated beyond words.
	An incredible source of power had just appeared near the center of
the city. So much raw, pure, beautiful energy...
	But as soon as it got within a half kilometer of the power, the
entity felt the wispy threads holding its consciousness together
weakening. It had to pull away quickly, lest it be destroyed.
	Whatever that source of power was, it was extremely well-guarded. To
be able to defend against an intangible shade...whoever had
constructed the power source was a force to be reckoned with.
	The entity would need more energy. A lot more energy. Possibly more
than it could find. It reasoned that it would also probably need to
obtain a corporeal form.
	The shade drifted away from the incredible power, seeking more
strong life energy...and a body. 

	*****

	Mars and Saturn emerged from their chosen doorway into a hallway
with two doors, and a circular platform at one end with a railing.
One of the doors was yellow-tinted, and had the sigil of Uranus
painted on it. The second door was aqua, and labeled with the Neptune
sigil. Mars approached the Uranus door, and placed her hand against
it. Nothing happened. She frowned. "It won't open." 
	"Maybe only Sailor Uranus can open it," Saturn offered. 
	"Hmmm...probably." Just to be sure, she checked the Neptune door
also. It didn't respond to her touch either.
	Saturn walked to the platform at the end of the hall, and examined
the railing. "Sailor Mars...come see this," she said. 
	Mars walked over. "Find something?" she asked, looking at the
railing. The top surface was flat, and had a series of colored lights
glowing beneath its surface. At the far left of the railing, a
crescent moon glowed. To the right of that, a pair of sigils appeared
together: Venus and Pluto. Beside those glowed the sigils of Saturn
and Mars. The next two sigils were Mercury and Jupiter, followed by
the sigils of Uranus and Neptune, which were dimmed. After the sigils
were a series of Kanji labels: 'Sub-level 1' through 'Sub-level 3'.
"This must be a lift," Mars decided.
	"Well if it is, then we both seem to be going to the same floor,"
Saturn commented.
	Mars nodded. "So it would seem," she agreed, touching their paired
sigils. The sigils began blinking, and the platform lit up. The word
"Ready" glowed on the railing.
	The two Senshi glanced at each other, shrugged, and stepped onto the
platform.
	The next thing either of them knew, they were in a different
hallway, and the sigils Mars had touched were dimmed out. The
previously dim Uranus and Neptune sigils were now glowing steadily.
Saturn stepped off the platform, and looked around. This hallway also
held two doors; a red one with the sigil of Mars, and a violet one
with her own sigil. She walked over to that door, and touched it.
"Welcome home, Sailor Saturn," a soft, melodic voice spoke out of
seemingly thin air. "Your assistant module is not configured. Please
configure your assistant module." 
	Saturn blinked, and glanced over at Mars. Mars shrugged. "Sounds
like a computer," she commented. 
	"You've been watching too much Star Trek," Saturn said, giggling.
Mars flushed. "Well, here goes nothing," Saturn said, stepping
through the door. It closed behind her.
	"Hey, wait up!" Mars said, approaching the door. It refused to open
at her touch, but she heard a muffled voice from inside. The door
opened, and she walked in. "We shouldn't split up, Saturn," she said.
	The younger Senshi blushed. "Gomen, I wasn't expecting it to close
like that," she said. The two Senshi looked around. "Wow...this is
nice," Saturn observed.
	The room they had entered appeared to be a small sitting room, with
a comfortable-looking sofa and two matching chairs, a round crystal
table, and various shelves and assorted other furniture fixtures
emerging from the walls. A bar-style counter sectioned off a part of
the room, which was occupied by a sink, cupboards, a countertop, and
spaces which seemed meant for small appliances. Said appliances were,
however, absent. The opposite end of the room had two doors. Saturn
walked over to one, and opened it. "Found the toilet," she remarked,
stepping inside. "And a small furo..."
	Mars walked over to the other door, half-expecting it not to open.
However, it did, and she walked in. "This one's the bedroom," she
said as Saturn walked over. The bedroom contained a queen-sized bed,
a desk and chair, and two more doors, one of which they discovered
was another entrance to the bathroom. The other was a medium-sized
closet. Aside from the furnishings, the suite was rather spartan.
	As they walked back out into the main room, Mars commented, "I
certainly wasn't expecting to find anything like this in the Palace."

	Saturn nodded. "I'm surprised as well. Whoever built this place did
a pretty thorough job."
	"Except for appliances," Mars remarked as she looked at the
kitchenette. "Why the hell are there places for appliances anyway? Or
a bathroom for that matter? I mean, we couldn't possibly use normal
appliances or city water here, could we?"
	"Palace utilities are currently available at maximum efficiency,"
the mysterious voice interjected. "Energy conversion systems are
configured to produce alternating current electricty."
	The two Senshi looked around. "What *is* that?" Mars wondered.
	Suddenly, a portion of the ceiling glowed soft orchid, and an object
floated down into the center of the room. It appeared to be a
crystalline representation of Saturn's sigil, with violet rings of
light orbiting it. "Greetings," it said, in the voice they'd heard
earlier. "I am the designated personal assistant module for the
senshi Sailor Saturn." 
	Saturn's eyes widened. "My assistant?"
	"That is correct," the assistant intoned. 
	"What are you called?" she asked.
	"I have not been assigned a name or personality designation at
present," the object said. "All of my configuration options are blank
until you set them to your preferences."
	"What does that mean?" Saturn asked.
	"I think it means you get to name it," Mars said.
	"Correct, Sailor Mars," the unit affirmed.
	"Okay...what were you saying earlier about utilities?"
	"The palace provides all neccessary functions for life support," the
assistant replied. "These functions include synthesis of air and
water, purification of synthesized air and water, convertible energy
generation, and synthesis of non-organic simple materiel."
	Saturn walked over to the sink, and turned the blue knob labeled
"cold". A stream of clear, cool water poured from the faucet.
"There's definitely running water," she said. Cupping her hands under
the faucet, she took a drink of it. "It's a lot cleaner than Tokyo
water, too," she added in a surprised tone.
	"Well, that answers one question. Still, what about the
electricity?"
	"Please specify desired location, type, and voltage of outlet," the
assistant supplied helpfully. The two Senshi blinked. Mars mouthed,
'Is that thing for real?' 
	"Ummm," Saturn said, walking over to the wall of the small kitchen.
"Right here," she said, tapping a spot above the counter. "The normal
kind for Tokyo, I guess," she added.
	"Compliance." The assistant floated over to where Saturn stood, and
projected a thin beam against the spot she had indicated. The wall
glowed brightly for a moment, and a dual AC outlet formed in the
crystal surface. She blinked, and looked over at Mars, who was
gaping. "Well, I think we have power," she said. 
	"Still no appliances though," Mars said after she recovered. "Ummm,
can you make a refrigerator or something?" she asked the floating
crystal.
	"I'm sorry," the assistant module replied. "I can only create simple
non-organic materials, furniture and utility outlets. Complex devices
are not within my capabilities."
	Saturn shrugged. "Looks like we'll have to get that kind of stuff
ourselves," she said. 
	Mars sighed. "This is too weird. Ah well, we might as well check out
my room," she decided. 
	As the two Senshi left, the assistant reminded them, "Sailor Saturn,
you have not configured your assistant module. Do you wish to do so
before you leave?"
	"Ummm...can I do it later?" she asked.
	"Yes."
	"Okay, I'll do it the next time I come up," she said as she walked
out the door.

	*****

	The crowd gathered outside the crystal structure began to panic
slightly as a convoy of JSDF transports and two tanks rumbled down
the street. When the convoy came to a stop, the police lieutant
stalked over to the jeep in the lead. "What are you doing here?" he
asked the uniformed driver.
	"Major Takada, Defense Force," the uniform said by way of
introduction. "The civil police force is excused from investigation
of the situation," he continued. "You've been routed to crowd
control."
	The lieutenant spluttered. "You can't be serious!" 
	"I have orders from the Ministry of Defense," the major said,
producing a document. 
	"So something you don't understand pops up in the middle of town and
you just come in and start trying to blow it up without asking any
questions?"
	The major scowled. "Lieutenant, we haven't opened fire on it yet,
and we're not going to unless it gives us cause. The Diet simply
wants to exercise caution." He leaned closer, and spoke in a softer
tone, "Hell, for all we know, this thing's friendly, or it might just
be a freak occurrence...nobody knows. That's why we're here. We're
going to wait until that thing does something. If it does something
benevolent, we'll put down our guns and have a party. If it does
something hostile, we'll blow the shit out of it."
	"And what if it doesn't do anything at all?" the lieutenant asked.
	"Then neither do we," the major grinned. 

	*****

	Shingo was talking with his parents, when the white-haired man
walked over to them and sat down. "Hope I'm not intruding," he said,
smiling benevolently. 
	"Not at all," Ikuko said. She paused. "I'm sorry, I don't believe
we've been introduced..."
	"Tomoe Souichi."
	Shingo's eyes widened. "Tomoe? As in--?"
	Tomoe-sensei nodded. "Hai. I'm Sailor Saturn's father." He smiled at
Shingo. "I've noticed that you spend a lot of time hanging around
her."
	Shingo blushed. "We've, uh, been dating," he said. 
	Tomoe nodded. "Well, I can't think of anyone better for Hotaru to be
involved with than our queen's brother." He smiled. 
	Kenji raised an eyebrow. "You say that so easily...I take it you've
already made up your mind to stay here then?"
	"My mind's been made up ever since Serenity's ascension," he said.
"I...owe it to Her Majesty." He shifted slightly. 
	"What do you mean by that?" Ikuko asked.
	"It's a long story," he replied. "I'll tell you sometime...that is,
if you decide to stay."
	"Well I'm staying," Shingo said. The adults looked at him in
surprise.
	"You realize what you're saying, don't you?" Kenji said. "Life in
this palace isn't going to be easy once the rest of the world finds
out what's going on. And you'll have to swear allegiance to your
older sister and do whatever she tells you to."
	Shingo nodded. "I understand all that," he said. "I also understand
some other things." 
	"Which are?" Ikuko asked.
	Shingo looked in the direction of the door Saturn had gone through
earlier. "I love Hotaru," he said softly. "There's no way I'm going
to leave her." He paused. "She's been real depressed about that war
going on. It's been bothering her for weeks."
	"Nobody likes to think about it," Kenji said. "But--"
	"She has more reason to worry than anyone else," Tomoe cut in. "If
you understood what it means for her to be what she is..."
	"She feels she has an extra responsibility, a destiny that the other
Senshi don't share in," Shingo said. "I worry about her...I care
about her too much to let her face that destiny alone." 
	Tomoe clapped a hand on Shingo's shoulder. The boy looked up, and
noticed a single tear streaking down the man's right cheek. "You're a
wonderful young man, Shingo," he said. "You've done more for her than
I've been able to." He smiled. 
	Ikuko and Kenji were visibly impressed. The solemn moment didn't
last long, however, as Serenity approached their small group. "Am I
interrupting something?" she asked softly.
	"No, Your Majesty," Shingo said, inclining his head respectfully. 
	Serenity blinked. "Am I imagining things, or are you being sincere
when you call me that?"
	Shingo looked up, straight into his sister's eyes. "Ask me again
when the Senshi return, Serenity-sama," he said, smiling. 
	Serenity smiled also, and knelt down to hug her little brother. She
then looked at her parents. "Mother, Father...I have something
important to tell you."
	"What is it, Usa...Serenity?" Ikuko asked. 
	Serenity blushed slightly. "I was going to wait to tell you, but
then all this happened and changed my mind." She paused. "I'm going
to have a baby."
	The three members of her family gasped. "A baby?" Kenji said.
	Serenity nodded. "Hai. My first heir is already on the way." She
smiled. 
	Ikuko leaned forward. "How long--?"
	"According to Mercury, I'm due between mid-January and
mid-February." 
	"I...I'm going to be a grandmother," Ikuko said. 
	"Well, that settles that," Kenji said. "It wouldn't do for us not to
be around when our first grandchild is born." He grinned.
	Ikuko smiled, eyes brimming with tears. "Of course not," she said.
"Someone has to teach Serenity how to be a good mother, after all..."
	"I couldn't think of anyone better to do that," Serenity said
softly, her eyes as watery as her mother's. 
	Tomoe watched wistfully as the family shared a lengthy hugging
session. 

	Chapter Five

	"Would you look at the size of this place?" Jupiter said in awe.
"It's huge!"
	Mercury scanned the walls of the enormous room, readouts flashing
across her visor. "We're underground," she commented absently. 
	"What? You sure about that?" Jupiter asked.
	Mercury nodded. Her computer beeped insistently, and she frowned.
"That's odd," she mused. "It's asking if I want to initiate a
download..."
	"A download? From where?" Jupiter wondered. She didn't know much
about computers, but she was pretty sure it took two of them to
download things.
	"That's what's strange. It seems to want to download something from
the Palace." 
	"What!?" Jupiter exclaimed. She leaned over the shorter Senshi's
shoulder, trying to get a better look. "Should you do it?"
	Mercury shrugged. "I don't think there's any harm." She tapped a few
buttons, and the screen of her computer flashed brilliantly. After a
moment, she made a noise of pleasant surprise. "It's a map of the
palace," she said. 
	"Really?" Jupiter asked. "That's great! We could definitely use
that." She paused. "So, umm, where are we now?"
	Mercury examined the map in her visor. "Sub-level one...class three
training facility," she finished, brow furrowing.
	"Class three? What's that mean?"
	"Hang on, I'll ask the palace," Mercury said, working at her
computer again. Another series of flashes and beeps, and she nodded
absently in understanding. "There are three large underground
training facilities in the Palace," she told Jupiter. "All placed one
level below each other, in ascending class order."
	"And what are the class orders?" Jupiter wondered.
	"Class three is apparently meant for basic to advanced martial arts
training," Mercury said. "In other words, it's a dojo. It appears to
be for training bodyguards...or perhaps the palace guards," she
added.
	"Palace guards? What palace guards?"
	Mercury favored Jupiter with the look of a teacher about to give a
lecture. "Any palace is going to have a troop of guards trained to
protect the nobility living or visiting within its walls," she said. 
	"But...we don't have anybody except Their Majesties, us Senshi,
the--" she paused. Mercury smiled. "Ohhh," Jupiter said at length. 
	"Right," Mercury said. "There are at least four people out there
suitable to become palace guards if they decide to stay." 
	"Okay, I get it. So what's class two?"
	"Class two is for high-level soldiers with special abilities. A sort
of elite force."
	"That's us, right?" 
	"No," Mercury said. "We're class one." She smiled. "That's why our
training room is at the bottom...we're likely to do the most damage."
	Jupiter grinned. "Why don't we poke around these training rooms a
bit?" she suggested.
	"Good idea. I doubt I can find out everything just by asking the
Palace," Mercury agreed. "Then we can go look at your favorite part
of the palace."
	Jupiter raised an eyebrow. "I have one?" she asked.
	"The kitchens," Mercury said, winking. Jupiter grinned. 

	*****

	A fourteen-year-old girl was lost in her thoughts as she walked down
a quiet street in Juuban. *I haven't seen him for...how long?* she
wondered. *I wonder if he still remembers me...or if he has a
girlfriend...what if he does have one...? I...* She blinked as she
realized she'd just walked past the house she was headed for. Cursing
under her breath, she backed up and headed up the walk, ringing the
doorbell of the Tsukino residence. She waited a few minutes, then
rang it again.
	"That's strange," she muttered five minutes later. "Nobody's home."
She then glanced off towards the center of town, where the enormous
crystal spire which had appeared a few hours ago stood. "Of course,
they're probably down there in that big crowd, looking at the
crystal..." She giggled. "Yeah, that's exactly where Shingo would
be." 
	Kayama Mika turned around...and screamed as a small cloud of shadowy
fog rose up from the sidewalk and engulfed her.

	*****

	Venus and Pluto had emerged from the throne room into a section of
the vast, beautiful courtyard surrounding the rear half of the
palace. A two-meter-high wall surrounded the courtyard on all sides,
but both Senshi knew that the locals would try to get over that wall
if they could. Still, nobody had come over yet, so they walked about
leisurely. 
	"Reminds me of the temple gardens," Venus said. As she spoke, a
sound from above startled her. She looked up, into the branches of a
beautiful tree that seemed to have absorbed some of the Palace's
power into itself, as its bark had turned a soft silver color, and
its leaves were rich and vibrant. Something rustled amid the leaves,
and a single crow hopped down from its perch, peering curiously at
them.
	"That's because it *is*," Pluto said. "See? That's one of Rei's
crows." 
	Venus blinked. "So the gardens stayed intact?"
	"All of the temple stayed intact," Pluto said. "It's just that the
Palace transformed it into crystal and grew around it."
	"Oh, I see." She looked towards the rear of the garden, and noticed
a beautiful building, which despite having turned to crystal, was
still built in the traditional style. "Hey...isn't that...?"
	Pluto nodded. "The Hino dwelling. It seems the palace decided it
would look better over there than in its original position," she
quipped. Venus giggled.
	The two Senshi walked over, and slid open the door. "Well, we don't
have to wonder what happened to any of the furniture or stuff from
Rei's place anymore," Venus smirked. The interior of the building had
been 'redecorated'...or, to be more precise, all the interior walls
had been removed, save for two walls in the back corner, enclosing a
small space. The remaining large room was piled with the furniture,
appliances, clothing, and personal effects Rei, her grandfather, and
Yuuichirou had at the shrine. "I wonder what's back there?" Venus
mused, stepping over to the enclosure. 
	When she opened the door, she was greeted by a roaring fire in a
shallow pit. She blinked. Pluto walked up behind her, and chuckled.
"Mars will be pleased to learn that her sacred fire is still
burning." 
	
	*****

	Endymion had taken a cue from Serenity and had begun mingling with
the civilians. Currently he was talking to Yuuichirou and a grinning
Motoki.
	"So...King Endymion," Motoki said, chuckling. "I always knew you
would be good for something someday. I sure wasn't expecting it to be
this, though..."
	Endymion laughed. "I've learned to expect the unexpected. When you
wake up one day and suddenly realize you're Tuxedo Kamen, reality
sort of takes on an entirely different meaning for you."
	Motoki smirked. "It must have been a lot of fun when you found out
who Sailor Moon was..."
	Endymion smiled. "That, my friend, is a story for another time." He
frowned. "You're not planning to stay here, are you? I mean, you've
got family, and Reika..."
	Motoki shrugged. "Honestly? I want to stay. I feel like this is the
beginning of something truly wonderful. But I do need to contact them
before I make any permanent decisions." He was silent for a moment. 
	"You're worried about what Reika will think," Endymion said.
	Motoki shook his head. "I think I can probably convince her to come
here too. I mean, something like this would be an archaeologist's
dream come true, right?" He sighed. "But if she doesn't like the idea
of living in the Crystal Palace, then I'll have to leave." 
	"So you really don't know what to do yet," Endymion concluded.
	Motoki sighed. "I don't suppose there's any way a citizen of the
Crystal Millenium can walk among the citizens of Tokyo normally?"
	Endymion shrugged. "We won't really know that until somebody goes
outside the palace," he said.
	Motoki nodded thoughtfully. "Of course, the real question is: how to
get out of here without getting mobbed...?"
	"I'm sure we can think of something," Yuuichirou put in. "Maybe the
Senshi will find some kind of teleport?"
	Endymion shrugged. "It's possible. What about you, Yuuichirou?"
	"You have to ask? I'm staying," the acolyte said. "I've been with
Hino-jiisan and Rei-san for so long, I don't think I could be happy
being someplace without them." He paused. "I don't know what it is I
could *do* here, but I'll just have to roll with the punches." 

	
	*****

	"It's beautiful," Neptune commented as she and Uranus strolled
through the gardens. They had emerged into the side of the courtyard
opposite Pluto and Venus. 
	"Hai, it is," Uranus agreed. "Hmmm...what's that over there?" she
asked, pointing to a structure half-hidden behind the central tower
of the palace. 
	"Let's find out," Neptune said, picking up the pace. In a few
seconds, the two Outer Senshi had rounded the bend...and gasped.
"Incredible..."
	"Sure looks familiar, doesn't it?" Uranus commented. Before them
stood a small replica of the royal palace of the Moon Kingdom, from
the Silver Millenium. The domed ceiling and columns, though
crystalline instead of marble, and only about half again the size of
a tool shed, were unmistakable. A soft glow illuminated the main
entrance.
	"Wonder what's in there?" Neptune asked.
	"Only one way to find out," Uranus said, jogging down the walkway
into the domed building. 
	When Neptune arrived at the doorway, she found Uranus standing there
gaping. She took a look around, and her eyes widened in wonder.
	The replica of the Moon Palace held a single room with a round
floor. The glow they had noticed was radiating from a circle of
slowly pulsing, colored lights in the floor around the edge of the
room. In the center of the room stood a crystal sculpture of a
crescent moon.
	Neptune took a closer look at the lighted floor, and realized what
she was seeing. Just beneath the surface of the floor, the sigil of
each Sailor Senshi glowed softly, surrounding the moon sculpture. "Is
this some kind of shrine?" Neptune wondered.
	"I think so," Uranus said, walking around the edge of the floor
until she came to her sigil. Curiously, she knelt down and touched
it. 
	"Uranus! Be careful..." Neptune warned.
	The sigil flared brightly, causing Uranus to step back warily.
	There was a soft, barely noticable grinding sound, and a low
pedestal rose out of the floor where the sigil had been. The sigil
glowed brightly now, lighting up the entire pedestal from within.
"What the--?" Uranus wondered.
	Neptune walked over to her sigil, and repeated the process, getting
the same result. She glanced over at Uranus, raising an eyebrow. The
other Senshi raised one foot, preparing to step onto the pedestal.
	"Uranus! Are you sure you want to do that? I mean, what if that's
some kind of teleport? What if you end up floating around a dead
planet?"
	Uranus frowned. "If these are teleports, then..." She stepped over
to the next sigil over, Pluto's sigil, and touched it. Nothing
happened, and Uranus smirked. "Still think they're teleports?"
	"I'm not sure they aren't," Neptune said, frowning.
	"Ah well," Uranus said, "might as well find out for certain..." And
with that, she stepped onto her pedestal.
	The crescent moon sculpture began to glow, and a column of silver
light rose around Uranus, disappearing into the ceiling. Neptune
gasped, moving to interfere...inadvertently stepping onto the
pedestal that, she thought wryly, literally had her name on it. A
similar column of light engulfed her...

	*****

	Serenity approached Naru and Umino. "Naru-chan," she said softly.
	Naru bowed. "Your Majesty," she said somewhat stiffly, causing
Serenity to wince. "Gomen," she added in a softer tone of voice.
"It's just...you told me everything else, why not this too?"
	Serenity sighed. "This was something I couldn't tell you. Enough
people were bound to find out who the Senshi were sooner or later,
but we didn't need for anyone to know about Serenity until..."
	"Until it would be too late to do anything about it?" Naru said
bluntly.
	Serenity grimaced. "Yes, that's about right." She paused. "Are you
still angry with me, Naru-chan?"
	Naru sighed. "I'm just hurt that you've been keeping all these
secrets from me." 
	"Are you...are you against me?" Serenity asked softly.
	Naru shook her head. "No...never, Serenity," she said. "I'm sure the
entire world will adore you," she added in a somewhat detached tone.
	Serenity smiled. "I wish I was as sure as you are," she said. "To be
honest, I'm scared. If the rest of the world thinks someone's trying
to take total control..." she let the sentence hang ominously.
	Naru shrugged. "I don't think you need to worry," she said. "After
all, you've got this palace, you've got the Senshi..."
	"And I've got good friends like you," Serenity added, hugging Naru.
	"Yeah...I guess," Naru said. 
	"Naru-chan..." Serenity said, holding the other girl's hands. "I...I
have a favor to ask."
	"A favor?" Naru repeated.
	"Hai...I was wondering...if you would be my firstborn's godmother." 
	Naru was shocked speechless. "First-born..."
	"Are you pregnant, Serenity-sama?" Umino piped in. Serenity nodded.
	"Let me think about it," Naru said. "I...I'll give you my answer
later. I haven't...I haven't even decided whether or not to stay
yet."
	Serenity nodded, and swept away from the couple.

	"Naru-chan...you've got to let it go," Umino said.
	Naru rounded on him. "How can you forgive her so easily for all the
years she ignored us? All this stuff she was hiding?"
	Umino sighed. "I'm not happy about it, but I understand." He looked
up. "She only did what she had to do. Do you think it's been easy for
her, living with all those secrets? I know I couldn't handle it..."
	Naru blinked. "I hadn't thought about that..." 
	During the silence, the one woman who had remained most detached and
aloof from everyone else walked over to the young couple. "Imagine,"
she said. "All those years we thought she was just a lazy, useless
crybaby who'd never amount to anything..."
	Naru smiled and laughed softly. "Yes, Haruna-sensei...there's
certainly more to our old odango-atama than any of us ever knew."
	"So," Umino said, "what about you, Haruna-san? Are you planning to
stay or leave?"
	Haruna smirked. "What possible use could a teacher be in here?"
	
	*****

	The girl's mind had been simple enough to destroy, her soul easy
enough to blacken and take into itself.
	The entity, that which had searched for energy, an identity, and a
purpose across untold kilometers of land and a frigid ocean, now at
last had something it desparately needed.
	It had a body. A young, strong, human body, which accepted its
energy eagerly, yearned to use it. 
	The shade was reborn into willing, succulent human flesh, and felt
more alive and more powerful than ever.
	Her senses had heightened considerably, she discovered. The auras of
the things and people around her were visible if she concentrated.
	She expanded her senses, and felt a pull, an attraction to something
about half a kilometer away. It was of modest but noteworthy power,
and felt as dark, as evil as her own essence.
	This, she decided, was worth investigating.

	*****

	Shingo had left his parents when they started going on about being
too young to be grandparents. He was happy, and looking forward to
being an uncle, but he didn't see any reason to go so nuts about it
this soon. 
	He had briefly talked to his teacher, Haruna-sensei, who seemed a
bit bitter about the "little baka that used to sleep in my class"
turning out to be a powerful queen. He, unlike his sister, was one of
Haruna's favorite students, and she seemed to take it under serious
consideration when he asked her to stay at the palace. "After all,
normal school is pretty much out of the question now," he had
reasoned.
	"And you *want* to keep going to school?" Haruna had asked him. 
	"Hey, it's still important," Shingo had replied. "Besides, there's
things we're all going to need to learn about this place, about the
past...this place has to have some kind of library."
	Haruna had considered that, and appeared genuinely enthused with the
possibility of learning about an ancient civilization that, up until
now, she'd never known had existed. "Still though...Usagi in charge?
I don't know..."
	Shingo had chuckled. "I know. Then again, she *was* Sailor Moon.
Just think about how many times she's saved people's lives..." He had
then left Haruna to mull that over.

	Now, Shingo looked around the room, and realized that he more or
less knew everyone...except the four women sitting off to one corner.
>From what he could tell, nobody really knew what to make of them
outside of the Senshi and his sister and brother-in-law. Deciding to
find out about them, he walked over. "Hi," he said, bowing politely. 

	One of the women, rather young-looking, with sky blue hair, smiled
at him. "Hello," she said. "You're the queen's brother, right?"
	He nodded. "Hai. Tsukino Shingo." 
	"We're the Ayakashi Sisters," she said. "My name is Beruche."
	The one with the unusual hairstyle...it reminded him of the spore,
he realized...smiled. "Cooan."
	The third of the sisters to introduce herself had dark auburn hair
which was pulled back tightly. "I'm Karaberas," she said.
	"And I'm Petz, the oldest," the sister with the greenish-brown hair
said. 
	"It's nice to meet all of you," Shingo said. "Can I ask something?"
	Karaberas smiled. "You want to know how we know your sister, the
Queen," she said. 
	Shingo nodded. "Hai."
	"It's a long story," Cooan said. "Better sit down." As Shingo did
so, Cooan continued, "We're not from around here, originally."
	"Where are you from?"
	"From the future, actually," Beruche said. 
	Shingo's eyes widened. "You're joking, right?"
	Petz shook her head. "No, we're from about a thousand years in the
future."
	"So what are you doing here?" Shingo asked.
	"Should we be telling him this?" Karaberas interrupted.
	Cooan shrugged. "He's bound to hear about it sooner or later..." 
	"Go ahead, I can take it," Shingo said.
	"Okay," Petz said. "You see, we...well, we were seduced into the
service of a group of outcasts known as the Black Moon Family."
	"They opposed Neo-Queen Serenity, Crystal Tokyo, and everything it
stands for," Beruche added. "There was a war, and during the war, the
Ginzuishou was lost, the Queen was sealed away in crystal, and Small
Lady was sent back in time to retrieve the Ginzuishou of this era."
	"Small Lady?" Shingo asked.
	"The Crown Princess of Crystal Tokyo," Cooan explained. "I think
everyone called her Chibi-Usa here."
	Shingo's eyes widened. "Chibi-Usa!? The little spore!? She's..."
	"She's from the same time we're from, and she's the heir to the
throne," Karaberas said.
	Shingo gaped. "So...that pest is Usa...Serenity's daughter?"
	"That's right."
	"Wow...that explains a lot. So what happened?"
	"We were sent back here, under the command of this bastard Rubius,"
Cooan said. "We were supposed to kill Small Lady and find the
Ginzuishou and take it back to the future with us. But the Sailor
Senshi interfered."
	"And we've been grateful to them ever since," Petz said. "Sailor
Moon healed us of the Black Moon influence, made us normal again."
	"That's why we were invited to the wedding," Karaberas said, "and
that's why we're going to stay here in the palace and serve
Serenity-sama."
	"I see," Shingo said. "Well, I'll say one thing...she definitely
doesn't have any boring friends!" The Ayakashi Sisters giggled at
that.

	*****

	The Sailor Senshi began returning to the throne room, and the
fourteen civilians gathered in the formation Pluto had put them in
earlier. 
	"Where are Uranus and Neptune?" Mars wondered, as the two Outers
were the only ones who hadn't returned.
	"Right here, Mars," said Uranus from the door to the courtyard.
Everyone looked over in their direction, and blinked.
	"What happened to you guys?" Jupiter wondered.
	Neptune and Uranus sported dramatically altered sailor fuku. The
bodysuit and gloves had changed from white to shimmering silver.
Their skirts, collars, and bows were the same colors as before, but
the fabric was now shiny. Their tiaras had become silver, and the
stars on their chokers were replaced by their respective sigils, cast
in silver. 
	"You won't believe what we found out back," Uranus said, grinning.
	"There's an unusual shrine behind the palace," Neptune said. "When
we were investigating it, this happened...I'm guessing this is the
final increase in our Senshi powers, at least for a while."
	"So *that's* what that is!" Mercury exclaimed. "I wonder why this
map didn't tell me about that..."
	"Anou...what map?" Venus asked.
	"The palace uploaded a map into my computer while we were
exploring," Mercury said.
	"The palace did, you say?" Serenity asked.
	"That makes sense...it might explain what we ran into upstairs,"
Mars said, briefly describing their discoveries. Each team in turn
briefed the others on what they'd found.
	Finally, Serenity said, "Alright...now we know what's here, and what
kind of things we'll be needing." She frowned. "Getting those things,
though...that's going to be difficult."
	"Not neccessarily," Pluto said. "Unfortunately, the outside world
will find out this palace is occupied, but that can't be helped. We
can only hope that they don't probe around too much."
	"It's for the best that the rest of the world at least knows what we
are, if not what our agenda is," Endymion said. "After all, some of
us have family on the outside they need to contact." He glanced at
Motoki briefly.
	Serenity nodded. "That's true. And we don't have an agenda yet," she
added, scowling slightly at her husband. "Speaking of which..." she
said, switching tracks, "there's the matter of who wishes to stay and
who wishes to leave. Have you all decided?" The group nodded in
unison. "Alright...how should we do this..." 
	"Please separate into whatever groups you feel are appropriate,"
Pluto stepped in smoothly. "When Her Majesty acknowledges you, step
forward and state whether you wish to remain. If you are remaining,
you must kneel before Her Majesty and swear your loyalty to her." She
paused. "Do not take such a promise lightly," she admonished. "Just
because we haven't established treason laws yet doesn't mean we don't
intend to." There was a distinctively unsettled murmuring at that
proclamation.
	"Pluto!" Serenity snapped. "Don't scare them so."
	The group milled about for a moment. When everyone seemed to be
where they belonged, Serenity gestured first at Shingo. Shingo
stepped forward, and knelt before the throne, bowing his head. "I
pledge my loyalty to Her Majesty, Neo-Queen Serenity," he said. Off
to the side, Saturn felt her heart skip a beat. *Shingo-kun...I'm
glad...*
	Usagi's parents, then Naru and Umino, the Ayakashi sisters,
Tomoe-sensei, Hino-san and Yuuichirou,  and finally Haruna-sensei all
stepped forward and pledged their loyalty to Serenity.
	Motoki approached the throne last. "Your Majesties," he said. "I'm
going to need more time to decide. I have...obligations out there,"
he said. 
	Serenity smiled. "I understand. You may have all the time you need,
to talk to your family and to Reika." 
	Everyone seemed more relaxed now. Serenity stretched. "I'm so
tired," she commented. Murmurs of assent rippled through the crowd.
"Mercury, could you please show these good people where they can
sleep?" Standing, she reached down and took Endymion's hand.
"Everyone is dismissed," she said. "If anyone needs anything or has
questions, please take it up with one of the Senshi or one of the
cats. I don't wish to be disturbed unless it's important," she added.
"Endymion and I are retiring to our suite for a brief honeymoon." She
winked at everyone before half-dragging her husband to the doorway
leading to the tower.

	*****

	Shingo stood in the west gardens of the palace courtyard, watching
the red-orange sun dip into the horizon, already mostly hidden by the
outer wall. The fading sunlight colored the crystal barrier a warm
orange, fronted by a soft silver wash from the temple behind him. The
Sailor Senshi had all gone into the building minutes earlier, and it
soon began emitting a steady silver glow from the entrance. 
	The lights from the temple began to fade, but Shingo didn't notice,
as the trees in the courtyard were still reflecting the silver glow.
He continued watching the setting sun.
	He started slightly when a pair of arms slipped around him, and two
silver-gloved hands wrapped themselves around his own. "It's
beautiful, isn't it?" Saturn's voice whispered in his ear.
	"Hai," Shingo said softly. He broke Saturn's hold slightly and
turned around to face her. "But not as beautiful as you." 
	Saturn blushed. Recovering, she gestured at herself. "How do you
like it?"
	Shingo looked Saturn up and down, taking in the shimmering silver of
her fuku, the glittering purple skirt and sailor collar. "Kawaii," he
said. 
	Saturn smiled at him. "I...I'm glad you're staying here," she said.
	Shingo took her by the shoulders and drew her close. "You didn't
think I'd leave and not risk seeing you again?" he asked. "I'm not
about to let go of a good thing."
	Saturn giggled happily, and leaned into him, hugging him fiercely.
He returned the hug just as tightly.
	Just as they were about to kiss, a voice interrupted them.
"Shingo-kun," Mercury's voice said, "I'm leading everyone to the
palace staff quarters now." Realizing what she interrupted, she
eeped. "Gomen nasai," she said, blushing. 
	Saturn blushed, and Shingo groaned. "Alright, I'm coming..."
	"No you're not," Saturn said. She gave him a strange smile. "Not
tonight. I'm not letting you go right now." 
	Shingo blushed. "Hotaru-chan?"
	Mercury also blushed. "Saturn! You're not planning to..."
	Saturn giggled. "Baka...I'm not ready for *that* yet," she said,
blushing slightly. "I just don't feel like being alone tonight with
all the excitement." 
	"Okay, if you're sure..." Mercury said.
	Not replying, Saturn dragged Shingo off towards the palace,
giggling. 
	Luna walked up to Mercury. "They're not going to..."
	Mercury shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine." 
	"Well, I hope they get some sleep tonight," Luna said. "We've got a
busy day tomorrow, and..." she paused slightly, grinning, "Shingo and
some of the others might not be too pleased with me." 
	Mercury looked askance at the black cat. "Luna...what are you up
to?" 
	"My official duty," Luna said simply, looking about as innocent as a
kid with her hand in the cookie jar. "As court advisor, it's my job
to suggest candidates for the royal guard to Her Majesty..." 
	Mercury blinked, then giggled as realization struck. 

	Interlude

		As the sun rises over the Far East this morning, 
	Japan and the rest of the world continue to wonder at
	the mystery of yesterday's unexplainable phenomenon.
		Yesterday, shortly after noon local time, a tower
	that appears to be made of pure crystal appeared on the 
	grounds of a Shinto temple in the center of the Minato
	ward of Tokyo. The crystal tower, which the Japanese 
	government has officially named 'Fushigi no Suishou' 
	(Mysterious Crystal), stands silent watch over the city
	as morning begins in Tokyo. So far, there has been no 
	activity from the structure aside from "an unusual 
	light" originating from the rear of the structure at
	sunset yesterday. All attempts by Tokyo police and the
	JSDF to gain entrance to the structure have met with 
	failure.
		Today, the world waits anxiously for some sign
	from the wonderous crystal structure, some clue as 
	to what it is, where it came from, and most of all,
	whether or not it's friendly.
						-AP article, 1 July 1999

	Chapter Six

	Shingo awoke unceremoniously to an intense tickling which caused him
to roll off the bed and crash into the floor. "Iteeeee...." 
	A soft giggle drifted down from above. "Good morning, Shingo-kun." 
	Shingo looked up to see a cute face peering at him over the edge of
the bed, framed by mussed dark hair. Shoulders clothed in the short
sleeves of a silken nightgown accompanied the face, as well as some
rather spectacular cleavage. He blushed. "Ohayou, Hotaru-chan," he
said, sitting up.
	"Sleep well?" Hotaru asked, still giggling.
	"Yeah," he said. He picked at his undershirt and boxers, blushing
slightly. "Ummm...?"
	"You were pretty tired," Hotaru said. "You passed out on the
couch...I brought you in here and, um," she blushed, "got that tux
off of you."
	Shingo turned bright red. "I see," he said. 
	"Don't worry, I didn't do anything hentai," Saturn said, winking.
"Turn around," she instructed. Shingo blinked sleepily, frowning, but
did so. As soon as his back was turned, he heard from behind him,
"Saturn Silver Power, Make-Up!" After several seconds, she said,
"Okay, you can look now."
	Shingo turned to see Sailor Saturn, in her new silver fuku, standing
at the foot of the bed. "Gotta get an early start," she said.
"There's going to be a lot to do today."
	Shingo stood, shaking his head to clear the cobwebs. "Ugh...hungry,"
he muttered.
	"They found all the stuff from the temple outside," Saturn said.
"We'll probably have breakfast once everyone is awake." She walked
out into the main room, and Shingo followed her. 
	Looking around, Shingo realized something, and groaned. "Great," he
said, "I just realized the only thing I have to wear is that blasted
tux."
	Saturn smiled. "That's easily fixed," she said. Looking up at the
ceiling, she called out, "Mimas!" 
	Shingo blinked as a floating, glowing purple crystal dropped out of
the ceiling. "Good morning, Lady Saturn," it said. It whirled for a
moment, then added, "I'm sorry, I don't recognize your guest."
	"This is Tsukino Shingo," Saturn said. "He's the queen's brother." 
	Mimas whirled again, then dipped in the air. "Good morning, Lord
Shingo," it said. 
	"Uhhh, good morning," Shingo said.
	"Mimas, Shingo-kun needs something to wear today," Saturn said.
	"Please tell me what you wish to wear," Mimas said.
	"Umm, I don't know?" Shingo asked. 
	"Whatever's suitable for palace staff," Saturn interjected.
	"Compliance," Mimas said. It began hovering around Shingo, examining
him from multiple directions. Just as Shingo was beginning to get
annoyed, it returned to the center of the room, and glowed more
brightly. A pile of clothing dropped at Shingo's feet. 
	"Go ahead and change in the bedroom," Saturn said, smiling. Shingo
nodded, picking up the bundle, and walked out.
	"Should Lord Shingo be listed as a suite occupant?" Mimas asked.
	"Hmm? Oh...no, not yet," Saturn said.
	"Should Lord Shingo be listed as a visitor with unrestricted access
to the suite?" the assistant asked.
	Saturn thought about that for a minute. "Yes," she decided. 
	"Compliance." 
	After a moment, the bedroom door slid open. "Well, this is better
than the tux," Shingo said. He now wore crisply pressed white uniform
trousers and a high-collared white jacket. The jacket was trimmed
with silver piping, and silver buttons ran down the center. The high,
stiff collar was fastened with a silver clasp shaped like a crescent
moon. He shifted for a moment, then reached down and tugged on the
white boots, adjusting them. 
	Saturn gave a whistle. "Looks good," she commented.
	Shingo blushed. "Thanks," he said. 
	"Well, we should see if anybody else is awake," Saturn said. 
	Mimas began whirling more rapidly, then said, "The assistant network
reports that three other Sailor Senshi are awake and have left their
suites," it said.
	"Thank you, Mimas," Saturn said. "Come on, Shingo-kun, let's go."
	"Hai," Shingo said, following the youngest Senshi out of the suite.

	*****

	Serenity yawned as she walked around the spacious living room of the
royal suite. There were three sofas in the room, as well as a
regal-looking love seat, sort of an informal throne for two, tucked
cozily away in the corner.
	Silently giving thanks to Mercury for finding out how to do so,
Serenity touched a wall of the room. It glowed briefly, and became
transparent, letting the early morning sunshine into the room.
	She glanced at the strange sculpture that had been placed against
the interior wall of the suite. They had puzzled over the statue when
they first came up; it was a featureless crystalline replica of
Sailor Moon, in her original form, from back in the days when she was
fighting the Dark Kingdom. Although the statue was colorless and
lacked any detail other than shape, it was otherwise a remarkable
likeness. 
	Endymion muttered a greeting as he emerged from the bedroom,
apparently less than half-awake. Serenity stepped over to him and
kissed him. "Good morning, husband," she said.
	"Mmm...I could get used to that kind of greeting," Endymion said.
Serenity giggled. 
	"You know, I wonder...the others mentioned something about some kind
of assistant thingy..."
	The royal couple both started as the statue of Sailor Moon jerked to
life, and stepped off her pedestal, bowing to them. "Your Majesties,"
she said in a crystalline version of Serenity's own voice. 
	"Wha--what--what are you?" Serenity asked.
	"I am your personal assistant module," the statue said. "Please
forgive me for startling you."
	Serenity blinked, recovering. "It's okay...you're...?"
	"Your Majesties, I was instructed to display a message for you upon
my activation," the statue said.
	"Uhhh...okay," Serenity said.
	The air between them shimmered, and a ghostly image of the old Queen
Serenity floated in midair. "Mother..." Neo-Queen Serenity said
softly.
	The old queen smiled radiantly. "My daughter," she began. "the fact
that you are seeing this means you have taken a husband, and have
brought the Crystal Palace out of dormancy. For this, I am proud of
you. You have truly become the heir to my throne.
	"I suspect that by now, your memories are complete enough that you
are aware that, in my time, there was no such Sailor Senshi as Sailor
Moon. This is what I would speak to you about." 
	The Queen paused. "For as long as the Moon Kingdom reigned, the
daughters of the line of Serenity commanded great power, but alas, we
were never well-trained in its use. With the Ginzuishou, and the
inherent power of the blood of Serenity, we were able to bring the
solar system together into one great, beautiful union, and maintained
that union throughout the Silver Millenium.
	"With the Sailor Senshi to protect us from any potential threats,
there never seemed to be a reason for the royal bloodline to be
trained strictly in our powers. All we needed to know was how to call
upon the power of the Ginzuishou, and how to be good rulers.
	"When the Dark Kingdom invaded, I began to question this policy."
The Queen looked down, her expression sorrowful. "As those dear to
me, those who looked up to me as their Queen and as their friend,
began to fall, I began to second-guess my own power. I began to
believe that, if I had been more properly trained, had spent time in
my youth as a warrior for peace, it might have helped turn the tide
against the Dark Kingdom. 
	"Shortly before the end, when I realized what must come to pass, I
created the powers of a Sailor Senshi who would not appear until long
after the collapse of the Silver Millenium...Sailor Moon." She
paused. "I gave the transformation artifact for this warrior to Luna,
and instructed her to give it to you, my daughter, when next she saw
you. It was my hope that, should the Dark Kingdom ever return, the
experience you would gain as a Sailor Senshi would enable you to do
what I could not; to destroy them for all time, and live through the
final battle." She smiled again. "The very fact that you are hearing
this message means that this has come to pass, and that I was right.
	"Serenity, my daughter, please remember what I have said. A queen
must know more than protocol and policies, must be able to do more
than hold court and command her warriors. A queen must know how to
fight to protect her kingdom, and her subjects, during a time of
crisis. Do not lose sight of your training, and when your children
are old enough, you must see to their training as well.
	"I must bid you farewell now, my beloved daughter. Please remember
these, my final words. The light of the moon is the message of love,
and will always guide you. May you rule always in peace and
happiness, and may the line of Serenity shine brightly for all time."
The image faded slowly away.
	Neo-Queen Serenity stood gazing at the empty space, tears in her
eyes. She was smiling. "Goodbye, Mother," she said softly. "I'll make
you proud." She turned to Endymion. "Come, husband," she said, "we
have much to attend to this day."
	Endymion followed his wife out of the royal suite, marveling at the
newfound confidence she displayed.

	In the circular hallway surrounding the throne room, the queen and
king encountered Saturn and Shingo. The two teens bowed. "Good
morning, Your Majesties," they said.
	Serenity smiled. "Good morning, Saturn, Shingo-kun. How was your
first night in the palace?"
	"Just fine, Serenity-sama," Saturn said. Shingo nodded agreement.
	"Nice uniform, Shingo-kun," Serenity said. 
	Shingo shrugged. "It's more comfortable than the tux, at any rate,"
he said, smiling. Serenity and Saturn giggled.
	Four stomachs growled in perfect harmony, causing their owners to
blush. "I think Jupiter mentioned something about breakfast in the
old shrine," Serenity said. "We should probably head out there."
	"Sounds good to me," Endymion said. They made their way through the
door to the east courtyard.

	*****

	Breakfast had been remarkable...Jupiter and Ikuko had managed to
take two weeks' worth of food for three people and turn it into a
veritable banquet for twenty-four. The portions hadn't been generous,
but they were at least filling, and hunger sated, the group returned
to the throne room. Most of the palace 'staff' wore uniforms
identical to Shingo's, except for the Ayakashi Sisters, who wore
vastly different, somewhat bizarre outfits, and Tomoe-sensei, who had
apparently talked the palace into giving him a lab coat to wear over
his uniform. 
	Pluto instructed everyone to kneel. "You may rise," Serenity said as
she and Endymion sat down.
	"If I may, Your Majesty," Luna said from her place at the Queen's
side, "I believe it would be an appropriate time for a crash course
in court etiquette."
	Serenity groaned. "Oh, Luna..."
	Luna cleared her throat. "For *them*, Your Majesty."
	"Oh. Um...okay, if you think," Serenity said, blushing. There was a
muted round of snickering, and Mars smacked herself on the forehead
when she thought nobody was looking.
	Luna stepped forward to address the assemblage. "Before we make our
presence known to the outside world, we must know how to conduct
ourselves both in this room and in public. 
	"The royal court and any public encounters on the palace grounds are
considered times to observe official protocol. Official protocol
dictates that when approaching, or approached by, the Queen or King,
you must kneel. If you encounter a Sailor Senshi or one of the other
nobles, you must bow. 
	"In an informal protocol situation, which means anywhere within the
Palace aside from the throne room, you must bow to the Queen and
King, and acknowledge Senshi and nobles by the appropriate title."
	"What are the appropriate titles?" Umino asked. "And who are the
nobles you keep referring to?"
	"The nobles," Luna said, "are the direct relatives of Their
Majesties and the Sailor Senshi. In other words," she clarified, "the
Tsukino family are the higher-ranking nobility, while any family
member of a Sailor Senshi is a noble of lesser rank. This includes
those not currently within the palace," Luna added, "although they
have no official status at this time.
	"The Queen and King are exempt from using the appropriate titles if
they choose not to. The Sailor Senshi are only required to address
the higher nobility by appropriate title. Everyone else must observe
the protocol of titles at all times." 
	"Luna," Serenity admonished gently, "you're losing them. Please get
to the point."
	Luna sighed. "You already know the appropriate titles by which to
address the King and Queen," she said. "The Sailor Senshi are
addressed with the title of 'Lady', followed by the appropriate name.
If they are in Senshi form, you must address them as such. Otherwise,
address them by name. Regardless of rank, all other nobles are
addressed as either 'Lord' or 'Lady'."
	"Why didn't she just say so in the first place?" Yuuichirou muttered
aside to Motoki.
	Motoki shrugged. "I guess she thinks it's her duty to make
long-winded lectures."
	Luna scowled. "Perhaps you'd like to listen to a long-winded lecture
on attitude adjustment?" she snapped.
	"No, sensei," Motoki and Yuuichirou both droned. Luna sighed, and
everyone else snickered.
	"There will be more protocols to discuss once everything is running
smoothly around here," Luna said. "For now, that's all you need to
remember."
	"Thank you Luna," Serenity said. There was a pause, and the queen
looked at the Ayakashi Sisters. "I assume you haven't regained the
powers you lost when the Black Moon Family influence was removed,"
she said.
	Petz shook her head. "No, Your Majesty, we have not."
	Serenity nodded. "Very well. Approach the throne, please."
	The sisters did so, and Serenity placed her hands upon the
Ginzuishou, closing her eyes. It began to glow brightly, and a soft
wind stirred around the four women. After a moment, the Queen opened
her eyes and smiled.
	"Thank you, Your Majesty," Petz said. "We will serve you well." The
Ayakashi Sisters walked back to where they had been standing, and the
other courtiers noticed that the quartet now bore silver crescent
marks upon their foreheads. 
	Pluto spoke up. "Your Majesty, we must now discuss our strategy for
revealing ourselves to the outsiders."
	Serenity nodded. "Yes...after all, we need to be able to make
contact with family and friends out there, and to buy supplies in
Tokyo." She frowned. "What will we do for money?"
	"That is already taken care of," Pluto said. "I took the liberty of
appointing myself the royal treasurer, and spent most of the night
setting up accounts with the palace treasury."
	"The Palace has a treasury?" Serenity asked. "Wow, they were really
thorough when they hid this place."
	Pluto nodded. "A modest fortune in Silver Millenium gold pieces,
polished gems, silver and platinum bars..." the others whistled. 
	"Enough money to fund a fledgling kingdom," Endymion mused.
	"Exactly," Pluto said. 
	"How did you manage to set up accounts with stuff like that
overnight?" Shingo wondered.
	Pluto smiled enigmatically. "All I needed was a little time," she
said. Serenity giggled, while Endymion, the other Senshi, and the two
cats groaned.
	"I liked her better when she was cold all the time," Venus remarked
to Jupiter.
	"That takes care of one problem," Tomoe said. "The next question
is...how will people out there react when we go outside?"
	There was silence for a time. "I believe it would be a mistake to
simply announce who we are to the world and hope they take it well,"
Serenity said.
	Pluto nodded. "I agree, Your Majesty. Right now, the governments of
the world are all nervous about the potential of another World War."
	"Right...if we reveal ourselves now, people might panic...we can't
let that happen," Saturn spoke up. There was an undercurrent of
sadness in her voice. 
	"But can we just sit in here and keep the world guessing?" Endymion
wondered.
	"Endymion-sama," Pluto said, "Nobody knows where the Great Sphinx
came from. Does the world see it as a threat?"
	Everyone blinked.
	"Okay, but what about food, appliances, basic neccessities of life?"
Serenity asked. "We know the palace gives us clothing, energy, and
water, but it can't give us food, or refrigerators,
ovens...televisions..."
	"Face it," Shingo spoke up, "somebody's gonna have to go outside
sooner or later, and there's that whole mob scene going on..."
	"Getting large items into the palace without being noticed will be
virtually impossible," Pluto said. 
	"Hmmm...you know," Jupiter said, "people in Tokyo know about the
Sailor Senshi...if we're seen out there, getting stuff and bringing
it in here, maybe people will just assume we've got a new home base
and we're moving in. It wouldn't be far from the truth," she said.
	"You know, she's got a point," Uranus said. "People have seen
stranger things than this around here."
	"Okay, but what about the rest of us?" Motoki asked. "What about
when we're seen coming and going?"
	There was silence. "It's too bad we don't know how Beryl's generals
teleported around so easily," Serenity commented.
	"Hmm..." Mercury said. Everyone turned their attention to her, but
she was ignoring them. She sat down on the floor, pulling out her
computer and visor. Beeps, flashes, and occasional curses emitted
from her location, and final she gave a cheer of victory. "Got it!"
With a few more keystrokes, a section of the wall in front of her
flashed, and spat forth a small pile of eight-sided crystals. She
picked one up, examining it. Everyone blinked as she suddenly
disappeared.
	"What the--?"
	A few seconds later, Mercury walked in through one of the entrances
to the throne room, grinning. "Teleportation crystals," she enthused.
	"Say what?" Jupiter asked.
	Mercury scooped up the pile of crystals, and walked around the room,
distributing one to each of the Senshi except Pluto, and one to each
of the palace staff. "Their Majesties won't need these," she
commented, "because Serenity-sama can use the Ginzuishou to teleport,
and Endymion-sama can use the power of the Earth."
	"They have no reason to leave the palace at this time in any case,"
Pluto advised. "They are far safer in here."
	"So, what do we do with these?" Shingo asked.
	"For now, put them in your clothes," Mercury said. "Later, everyone
can find their own means for wearing them...necklaces, rings,
earring, choker, whatever." She tucked her own crystal into the trim
of her glove. "To use it, simply concentrate on a destination, and
hold it for a few seconds. The crystal will send you wherever you
want to go." She paused. "I advise you not to teleport anywhere too
close to the palace. These crystals can send you anywhere in Tokyo.
Beyond the edges of Tokyo, you'll need to take conventional
transportation."
	"Also," Pluto added, "don't teleport directly into the throne room
unless there's an emergency. Teleport into the entry hallway." She
pointed to the back of the throne room. "Or into the Round Hall." She
gestured around her. 
	"How much can we haul around this way?" Jupiter asked.
	"You can teleport a maximum of two people beside yourself," Mercury
said, "but it limits the range. You'd need to get within two
kilometers of the palace to return. The more you're carrying, the
more of a drain it puts on the crystal."
	"So...how are we going to get appliances in here?" Ikuko asked.
	"Have them delivered to the street address of Hikawa Shrine," Pluto
said.
	"Are you crazy!?" Mars shouted. "What happens when delivery trucks
start coming to the palace?"
	"The Senshi bring in the deliveries," Pluto said. "As Jupiter said
earlier, we should give the impression that this is the home base of
the Sailor Senshi. It will compromise the identity of Sailor Mars,
but that's a moot point. Sooner or later, when nothing happens
besides a lot of normal household equipment being delivered, and the
occasional sighting of a Sailor Senshi buying groceries, the public
will lose interest. We'll have to deal with the Palace becoming a
tourist attraction, and probably constant external surveillance by
the Japanese government, but that's nothing we need to concern
ourselves with."
	"Can't argue with logic like that," Jupiter said.
	Serenity nodded. "Alright then. I assume, Pluto, that you've got
money or credit cards for everyone?"
	Pluto produced a briefcase from her subspace pocket. Inside were
several thick stacks of yen notes, as well as a small pile of plastic
cards. "It took some doing to coerce my banking associates into
approving these cards," she said, "but they're legal." She began
handing them to the Sailor Senshi.
	"Now why wouldn't they--oh," Venus said, as she was handed a credit
card issued to 'Sailor Venus'. "I see."
	"Why don't we just go out there in our regular forms?" Mars
wondered.
	"Because we might still need the advantage of having a disguise to
fall back on," Pluto said. "Plus, remember, we're making it look like
the Sailor Senshi are setting up shop here." 
	"Right, I forgot," Mars said as Pluto handed her a card.
	"I'll handle ordering the appliances for the palace kitchens," Pluto
said, transforming out of Senshi form. "I have contacts who can
supply industrial-grade kitchenwares that won't ask questions." 
	"We won't need to worry about laundry," Mercury said from where she
was still hooked into the palace with her computer. "The palace
itself can take care of dirty clothes." 
	Pluto divided a stack of yen notes among the Senshi. "Use these for
groceries, toiletries, and such," she said, "as well as for public
transportation if neccessary, and anything else you might need." She
smiled. "Don't worry about expenses, we're not going broke anytime
soon." She retrieved two more stacks from the briefcase, and divided
the yen up amongst the others. "Lady Ikuko," she said, "you should go
with Sailor Jupiter to order groceries to stock the kitchens. The
rest of you," she said, "take care of getting in touch with anyone
you need to talk to, and buy whatever personal effects you need." She
paused. "Don't mention the palace or anything you've seen here to
anyone that doesn't need to know." 
	Serenity smiled. "Well, everyone who's leaving may leave at their
convenience. Good luck, and be careful out there."

	*****
 
	/...more news on this recent situation as it develops. And now, on a
different note...the Senshi are among us! Various reports, some rumor
and hearsay, some official eyewitness accounts, report that Tokyo's
long-standing urban legends, the Sailor Senshi, have been spotted in
various locations in Tokyo. Already, these Senshi have been seen in
grocery stores, appliance stores, and numerous other places of
business. One of our field reporters interviewed Mafuni Yoshiro of
Kichi Appliance Emporium:
	"She was right there in front of me! The blond one, you know, the
one that wears orange? She paid by credit card, and get this, the
card said 'Sailor Venus' on it, and it was valid!"
	Could this sudden surge of Senshi sightings be related to the
Fushigi no Suishou? Stay tuned to this station for exclusive reports
as our street beat roams Minato ward, In Search of Sailor Senshi.
Now, back to.../

	"Man, what a bunch of shit!" said the young man watching the
newscast on a store television. 
	"Pretty ridiculous," added the girl who had walked up beside him,
giggling.
	"That's so stupid, you know? Sailor Senshi, walking around like
regular people...with credit cards, yet! Get real." He turned to the
woman next to him. "Don't you...agree..."
	"Oh, definitely," Sailor Saturn agreed, nodding. 
	The man panicked. "Oh hell...a Sai...a Sailor..."
	Saturn smiled sweetly. "You'll have to excuse me," she said, "I'm
going inside now to buy one of those nice digital satellite systems."
She produced a purple plastic card from someplace, and held it up.
"Don't leave home without it," she remarked, winking. Fighting to
keep from laughing out loud at the boy's expression, Saturn walked
into the electronics store.

	*****

	Mika walked around, trying to get a fix on the reading she'd taken
yesterday. 
	When the entity had absorbed Mika's soul, shattered her mind, it had
not expected to merge so completely with the young girl. Yet, Mika's
thoughts, everything the girl knew, did, and was, all had become part
of the entity's dark consciousness. It now considered itself to be
Mika, only completely evil. A sort of...Dark Mika, she giggled to
herself. As such, she'd been able to 'become' Mika, adopt her
mannerisms and personality, enough to completely fool the girl's
family. Her body had needed rest after the strain and trauma of
merging with the powerful evil. Refreshed and recharged, Dark Mika
now roamed the shopping district, trying to track down what she'd
felt the day before. 
	Still, the energy field that giant crystal was throwing over Tokyo
was interfering with her senses, keeping her from getting a clear
lock on the speck of evil she had detected earlier. 
	As she walked, trying to pinpoint the energy, she noticed something
very powerful coming down the sidewalk across the street. She looked
over, and saw a Sailor Senshi go into a store.
	She scowled as a memory welled up from somewhere within. Destruction
at the hands of the Senshi. The threat they pose. Constant, total
failure and humiliation at their hands. She clenched a fist. 
	Yes, the Sailor Senshi would be a definite problem. Especially since
she had no army to command...army to command? Where had that thought
come from?
	And yet, she seemed to remember, on the edge of her consciousness,
commanding armies of powerful demons at one time. She tried to
remember more, about how to summon her servants. It was no use...the
knowledge was lost to her.
	*Very well...I'll just have to build a new army,* she mused. But
how...? She certainly didn't have the power yet to create a
full-fledged evil servant.
	Another memory welled up, from the part of her that was Mika. A
powerful creature the girl had once seen in an American film. Mika
remembered something she'd learned about that film: the producers had
actually built the creature, instead of using computers to put it
into the movie, as was the standard procedure these days. A full
animatron, requiring a sizeable puppeteering staff to operate. It now
sat in a warehouse somewhere, gathering dust.
	She smiled. Yes, that would do quite nicely. Ducking into an
alleyway, she concentrated, focusing the power she'd accumulated.
Within a few minutes, she held in her hands a glowing black spark, an
evil soul like hers, only less powerful, less complete. One that
would exist only to serve her. 
	"Go forth, my little friend," she told it. "Seek out the lifeless
husk whose image I have burned into your essence. Once you find it,
you will be complete. Obtain energy from the humans there to make
yourself strong, then return to me...my beautiful new youma." 
	The youma soul rose from her hands, and shot over the rooftops,
headed across the Pacific Ocean.

	*****

	Shingo paced the east courtyard of the palace, trying to decide what
he wanted to do. Earlier, when Saturn had left, he'd helped Hino-san
and Yuuichirou move most of the appliances from the old temple
building to Mars' room, barely managing to convince the assistant
module, Asuka, to go along with Mars' orders and let them in. Shingo
hoped he didn't have to visit Mars very often; Asuka was nasty and
rude. *Why the hell did she have to program that thing to be such a
bitch?* he wondered.
	Hotaru had forbidden him to go shopping with her, saying she was
going to surprise him with a few things. He didn't really have anyone
to visit outside, and couldn't think of anything he really needed
right now, except maybe some manga and schoolbooks from his house. He
wasn't in any particular hurry to get them, but it would be something
to do at least.
	Just as he was about to try teleporting, Luna approached him. "Lord
Shingo," she called out, practicing what she had been preaching
earlier. 
	Shingo paled. He still hadn't gotten used to the idea of talking
cats. "Uh...hai?" 
	Luna looked down. "Gomen...I'd forgotten about your feelings towards
cats..." she turned to walk away.
	Not heartless by any stretch of the imagination, Shingo picked up on
Luna's hurt tone, and his discomfort over the black cat began to
erode. After all, he reasoned, Luna's not going to hurt me. I know
that. Right. "Hey...Luna, wait..." he said. Luna turned around.
"Umm...look, I know we didn't get off to a good start, but...I mean,
if I'm gonna be living in the palace, I guess I can get over it." He
smiled.
	Luna returned the smile, and padded back over to him. "That's a very
noble attitude. I see I've made the right choice."
	"Choice?" Shingo blinked. "For what?"
	"As Her Majesty's advisor, I also have the task of selecting
candidates for the palace guard. It is a position of great honor, and
great responsibility," Luna said, "as the palace guards are charged
with the duty of defending the palace from both the curious as well
as the hostile." Looking up intently, she said, "I've decided to
nominate you as one of the palace guards."
	Shingo gaped. "Me? But...but I don't even know how to fight!" he
protested. "The day I found out Hotaru is Saturn, some punk creamed
me with one punch!"
	"That's because you've never been properly trained," Luna said. "A
problem easily remedied. Mars, Venus, Jupiter, the Outer Senshi,
Hino-san, Yuuichirou, even King Endymion...there are no shortage of
experienced fighters within the Palace to learn from." She paused.
"When your sister became Sailor Moon, she learned to fight fairly
quickly, even if she had problems at first." Another pause, and Luna
gave Shingo a sly grin, as though she were about to say something
naughty. "If that klutzy odango-atama could do it, you should have no
problems."
	Shingo blinked repeatedly, then began laughing. Luna giggled as
well. When they calmed down, Shingo said, "But why do we even need a
palace guard, with the Senshi around?"
	Luna sighed. "Evil has not been extinguished, merely hindered. There
may be times when the Senshi have to leave the Crystal Palace to do
battle."
	"Leaving the palace unguarded...I understand now," Shingo said. 
	"Also, the Senshi need bodyguards," Luna added. "They can't very
well use their powers against normal humans who are simply too
curious for their own good."
	Shingo bowed his head. "Yeah, that's for sure. Especially not
Saturn."
	Luna looked up, concerned. "You're upset because your girlfriend's
powers are designed purely to destroy."
	"I'm concerned because I know what effect it's having on her to cope
with those powers," Shingo said. "Have you heard the story of how I
found out about Sailor Saturn?"
	Luna nodded. "Vaguely. I know the two of you were attacked by a
street gang, and Hotaru had to transform to drive them off."
	"But the leader wouldn't leave, so she killed him," Shingo said. "I
know it's been haunting her ever since."
	Luna sighed. "This is exactly why you should agree to become a
palace guard," she said. "So that kind of thing doesn't happen."
	Shingo nodded. "Alright...I accept, on the condition that you make
me Hotaru's personal bodyguard."
	"Of course," Luna said, smiling. "Excuse me, I need to round up the
other guard candidates. Report to the class three training facility
in half an hour." She headed off towards the old shrine building.
Shingo blinked.
	"Hey, where's it at?" he wondered.

	*****

	"Hey! Hey you, stop that vehicle!" Major Takada shouted at the
delivery van which had pulled into the middle of the crowd.
	The driver and his partner jumped out, and scratched their heads as
they puzzled over a piece of paper. "This can't be the right
address," the driver said.
	"That's what was in the computer," his partner replied.
	"Hold it, what's this?" the major asked as he approached them. "What
are you doing here?"
	"Not sure," the driver said. "We're just doing our job...the
delivery order has this address, see?" he held it out for the major
to inspect.
	"Well...it's probably a mistake," Takada said. "This area's under
JSDF surveillance right now." He pointed at the towering spire of
crystal. "I don't think anybody in there could have bought
appliances."
	"You sure?" the driver's buddy said. "I mean, you've heard about all
the Senshi sightings in town, right?"
	"Senshi sightings?" Takada echoed.
	"Yeah, they've been seen all over town, buying all kinds of things."

	Behind them, in the street, a few more delivery vans pulled up,
their drivers staring up at the spire and wondering if they were in
the right place.
	"Still though..." the major began, but was interrupted by a loud
murmuring from the crowd, and a tap on the shoulder from behind.
	"Excuse me," a polite female voice said. "If you boys are finished
talking, we'd like to get our new refrigerator and range inside." 
	The deliverymen looked up, and gaped. Major Takada slowly turned
around, to see a beautiful aqua-haired woman and a tall, short-haired
blonde woman, both wearing shimmering sailor fuku, standing behind
him. The aqua-haired Senshi smiled politely, while her friend
smirked, arms crossed.
	Major Takada suddenly felt numb. "Uhhh...yes ma'am," he said. "Sorry
for the...delay...carry on, gentlemen," he added, never taking his
eyes off the two Senshi even as he walked back over to his jeep.
	"Um, where, um..." the driver began.
	The two Senshi walked over to the van, and came out carrying a
refrigerator a minute later. "You two get the range and follow us,"
the tall one said. "We'll wait for you up there."
	Numbly, the deliverymen did as they were told, while the crowd
murmured in awe.

	*****

	Two security guards strolled leisurely through a warehouse, checking
to make sure everything was where it belonged.
	"You know," one of them commented as they walked past a tall wooden
crate, "I'm glad they finally put that thing in a box. I get the
creeps every time I walk past it."
	"Like it's gonna come alive and beat the living shit out of you?"
his partner asked, snorting. "Get real. That thing hasn't been
'alive' for over five years, and even then it took a whole damn crew
of people to run it."
	"I *know*," the first guard said. "It's just...I dunno. Just being
stupid, I guess."
	"Damn right you're being stupid, Wedge."
	As they walked away, a black spark descended from the skylight and
passed through the crate...

	*****

	A sudden flash of awareness permeated its being, searing pain
roaring through its body as wires, circuits, metal framework, PVC,
and myriad other components became as flesh; still machine, and yet
so much more. Electric muscles which barely worked at one time now
would work smoothly, flawlessly, continously, without the support of
technicians. The control circuits the puppeteers created shattered,
absorbed into its brains and body, knitting together into a new
matrix. The pain subsided, and a surge of power...dark
power...coursed through its inconceivably refitted torso. 
	What its essence lacked, had now been found, and what the body
lacked, it now possessed.
	And for the first time in over five years, and the first time ever
with a voice truly its own, the creature raised its arms to the sky,
and roared...

	*****

	"The HELL was that!?" 
	The two guards drew their weapons, looking around warily for the
source of the terrible sound. 
	"Okay, that was too weird." Wedge's gun trembled slightly in his
grasp.
	"Shit, are you crazy? It's probably some practical joker out for a
good time. Alright you," the second guard shouted. "Fun's over, come
out now."
	"You want me...to come out?" a deep voice boomed, echoing across the
high rafters of the warehouse.
	"You heard me, wiseguy. Enough is enough. Show yourself."
	"I don't think that's such a good idea," Wedge said.
	"As...you...WISH!" the voice roared. The three-meter tall crate
standing against the wall of the warehouse shuddered violently,
before exploding, spraying splinters in all directions.
	"Oh SHIT. Oh shit, oh shit, oh motherfucking shit..." the nervous
guard said, taking several steps back.
	"How the hell...? Who's controlling it?" Wedge's partner wondered.
	"Nobody controls me," the creature boomed, stalking towards them.
The building shook with each step it took. 
	"You...you stay back..." the rent-a-cop said. "Alright...whoever's
controlling this thing, you've made your point already! Shut it
down!"
	"I SAID..." the creature bellowed. It stood directly in front of
them now. "NOBODY..." as the guards raised their guns to fire, it
seized their hands, knocking the weapons to the floor and causing
them to cry out in pain. "CONTROLS..." It grabbed each of them by the
collar using its upper arms, raising them up to its eye level.
"PRINCE..." The guards screamed as the creature's eyes began to glow,
and they felt their lifeforce being ripped from their bodies. "GORO!"
	Goro unceremoniously tossed the dead guards across the warehouse. He
flexed his three-fingered hands, examining them curiously. "At
last...at long last, I am free...free to do what I was born to do..."

	*Goro,* a voice rang in his mind. *Gather energy from the humans
around you. Use the energy to bring yourself to the islands of Japan,
and find me. I have great need of your services.*
	"I hear and obey, my savior," Goro rumbled. He located the
pathetically undersized exit, and stalked out of the warehouse.

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