*--*--SAILOR MOON: Elementary, Dear Makoto--*--*
DISCLAIMER
Sailor Moon, the Sailor Senshi, Tuxedo Kamen, Queen Beryl,
and all those happy people and the locations, events, and
other stuff related to them are the creation and property
of Naoko Takeuchi. I am in no way trying to compromise
Naoko-sensei's copyrights or work, I'm doing this for fun
and because I love Sailor Moon. Sailor Andromeda is the
sole property of my sister, Elizabeth Loomis, and is used
with permission. To learn more about Sailor Andromeda, visit
her web site... and sign her guestbook, please. -_^
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Temple/2914/index.html
*--*--Part 4--*--*
Kartaron remembered it well.
The day he had come to Jupiter, to conquer it for Beryl
as she had asked. It was a large world, with many moons, each
with it's own garrison. He had destroyed them first, one with
fire, one with ice, the others with other powers. Then he had
gone for Jupiter itself, the larget version of distant Earth,
his home.
His forces had had trouble with the Jovian Army from the
outset, but the army on the planet proper was even more
formidable than he had thought. So he had gone down himself,
sword in hand, to destroy them all.
"With Jupiter gone," Beryl had said, "the Moon has no
defense against our onslaught. Go now, my beloved, and run
them into the ground."
While it was odd for Beryl to speak so, he trusted her.
His advisors had told him that she had been corrupted by
something called "Metallia," but he heard none of it. He had
eyes only for his queen. Granitus was the only one who obeyed
him, and he was back on Earth when Jupiter was attacked.
The humans of his forces fell to Jupiter's superior
weapons and training. But Kartaron was better than them
all... save one.
After chopping down the old man, Jupiter's Emperor, he
had seen a tall young man push a young woman into a portal,
which sealed itself. Thinking he was being ignored, the huge
Earther tightened his grip on his two-handed sword.
"You are a fool," Kartaron told the young man, who
shrugged as his clothing changed before Kartaron's eyes.
Turning to face Kartaron, the Earth lord saw the younger man
was clad in dark green armor, that almost looked black in
Jupiter's night. A dark grey cloak flowed from the understated
shoulder pads of the armor. A katana hung at his side.
"Maybe," the young man had replied, "But at least I have
secured Jupiter's future, as well as your fall. The Moon
will soon know of your treachery."
"You will die for this."
"A ronin... even a dark one... upon finding his master
will defend that master to his death. Or mistress, in this
case."
"In this case, 'Dark Ronin,' you are about to meet your
doom."
With a savage cry that could cow the mightest of Earth
warriors, Kartaron charged the Dark Ronin. The other man
simply moved to one side and with a simple motion drew his
katana, smacked the flat of it against Kartaron's passing
posterior, and replaced the blade. Kartaron stumbled, trying
not to lose his balance. He swung his sword in an attempt
to take the Dark Ronin off at the knees, but the Dark Ronin
somersaulted behind Kartaron and kicked him in the small of
the back. As he turned, growling in pain, there was a flash
as the Dark Ronin again struck with his blade, and Kartaron
found the handle of his own sword falling apart. Before he
could muster any kind of response, the Dark Ronin made a
simple gesture, and Kartaron was rooted to the spot by some
otherworldly force.
"You are a talented warrior," the Dark Ronin said softly,
"and in other circumstances, we might have been friends. But
you have slain my people and invaded my home. For that, I'm
afraid I must punish you..."
Then Beryl had come.
With an army and powers he never knew she had, she had
laid waste to Jupiter. Titanius, one of Kartaron's minions,
knocked the Dark Ronin back, and they had both been consumed
by a portal created by Beryl.
"He will fall until my death," she had told him, "As for
you, 'beloved,' I do not tolerate failure."
Somehow, he felt one with Beryl after that, as if he was
within her body or mind. Through her eyes, he saw Jupiter
decimated, no longer a verdant planet, but a ball of dust,
gas, storms, and death. He felt her glee.
"What has happened to you, Beryl?" he had asked.
But only darkness had answered him.
And only darkness surrounded him now. He looked over at
the wall, and Granitus appeared.
"You summoned me, my lord?"
"I want your two new warriors to follow Carbonius to the
next battle with the Sailor Scouts. When the Dark Ronin
appears... and I know he will... have your new warriors
destroy him."
"What if the Dark Ronin does not..."
"He will. I know it."
"As you will, my lord."
Granitus melted back into the cavern to plan to battle.
Kartaron leaned back in his stone throne and closed his eyes.
"Soon, Beryl," he whispered into the darkness. "Soon I
will have my revenge."
An orange glow dawned across Kartaron's face as he willed
the sealed passage to the Earth's core open.
"Or I will destroy our world. If one of us cannot claim
it, no one shall."
*
"They've been in there for hours," Mako complained.
The tall girl and Usagi were walking together towards the
ice cream parlor where Mamoru was waiting.
"They're more than likely just old friends," Usagi
replied.
"Well I can't help but feel a little..."
"Jealous?" Usagi offered.
Mako shot her friend a look.
"I didn't say that," she contended.
"No, I did," said Usagi with a smile. "I know how you
feel about Hikari, and you feel this Miaka chick is
threatening your relationship."
"I..."
Usagi, eyelids lowered conspiratorially, moved very
close to Mako.
"I won't tell anyone, it'll be our little secret!"
Mako turned away and blushed.
"Just don't go blathering about this, okay?"
By then they had reached the parlor. Not only was
Mamoru there, so were Ami, Rei, Minako, and the cats prowled
around outside.
"I believe I owe you a strawberry shake," said Usagi
with a smile.
Not too long after that, the six friends were laughing
about Usagi's latest run-in with Haruna-sensei.
"But I *was* held up by traffic!" the girl protested.
"Nevermind the fact you *walk* to school," Ami pointed
out.
This threw them into another flurry of laughter. Usagi
glared at them all, but when Mamoru pulled her tighter, she
felt her tension melt away like chocolate in the noon-day
sun.
Then the storefront across the street shattered.
They rushed out into the street. The diamonds in the
jewelry store's display shot out at them. Screaming
warnings, they ducked for cover. Mamoru threw himself on
top of the cats and the girls leapt to their feet.
"MERCURY STAR POWER, MAKE UP!"
"VENUS STAR POWER, MAKE UP!"
"MARS STAR POWER, MAKE UP!"
"JUPITER STAR POWER, MAKE UP!"
"MOON CRYSTAL POWER, MAKE UP!"
Swirling light shoved the darkness back at the five
ladies seemed to dance into their new forms and assume
poses as the costumes took their forms. The Sailor
Senshi looked up as three Stone Angels fell to the
street and five Stone Soldiers came out of the pavement.
>From within the darkened jewelry store glowed two red eyes.
"So, these are the much-reputed Sailor Scouts," rumbled
a voice.
"You bet we are!" Jupiter shouted. "And we're gonna
clean your clock!"
"I very much doubt that, my dear. For I am Carbonius...
and in all my years, my 'clock,' as you put it, has never been
'cleaned.'"
"You have ruined a great store!" said Sailor Moon. "My
dearest love had picked out a ring for me there! For this I
can never forgive you! I am the soldier of Love and Justice,
Sailor Moon! In the name of the Moon, I shall punish you!!"
Carbonius laughed and gestured dismissively at the
Sailor Senshi. The Soldiers and Angels converged on them.
But by now, this was old hat to the Sailor Scouts.
"Sailor Moon, we'll cover you so you can cut through the
minions," said Sailor Mars.
"Understood," Sailor Moon replied.
"BURNING MANDALA!" Two Angels' wings melted and they
shrieked in pain.
"VENUS LOVELY CHAIN!" Half of the Soldiers' weapons
were shattered.
"SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!" Two Stone Soldiers were
knocked flat.
"MOON PRINCESS HALATION!"
The warriors of stone were reduced to moondust. But
the victory of the Senshi was short-lived. With a cry
that chilled them to the bone, Carbonius rushed the young
women.
His black fist, the size of Mamoru's head, smashed into
Mars's midsection, knocking her into the (thankfully)
abandoned ice cream parlour's glass storefront. He
backhanded Venus, and she nearly carreened into an oncoming
truck. Jupiter gathered her power.
"Damn you!" she cried and tossed the ball lightning at
the huge foe. But Carbonius' back turned into something
crystalline and refracted Jupiter's lightning back at her.
Prepared for a counter, Jupiter threw herself out of the
energy's way, and charged Carbonius, her fist the point of
the battering ram that was her long body.
Carbonius slapped Jupiter across the face, sending her
spinning backwards into a car. Tuxedo Kamen got between
Sailor Moon and Carbonius.
"What are you?" he asked the creature.
"Like my parent element, I can make myself as hard and
reflective as diamond or as soft and absorbing as coal. I
am your doom, little man."
Tuxedo Kamen stabbed at Carbonius with his cane. The
weapon sank deep into Carbonius' soft belly, and the creature
laughed. He grabbed Tuxedo Kamen by the throat and tossed
him into Sailor Moon. Sailor Jupiter held her head as she
came to.
And saw the tattered cloak of the Dark Ronin writhing
in the evening air above them.
"So, we meet again, Carbonius," he said. The creature
paused.
"Yes," Carbonius replied.
"You have harmed my friends, and my Princess. I'm
afraid you must be punished." The blade of the Dark Ronin's
katana flashed in the moolight as he drew it from its ornate
scabbard.
"I see. Now, meet *my* friends... Magnesius and
Plutonius."
There was a blinding flash of light right in front
of the Dark Ronin. He backpedaled, his cloak held up over
his damaged eyes. The glow faded as it's creator, a white,
ungainly-looking creature flew into view. His compainion
looked similar, but was a dark glowing lavendar. This purple
creature touched the rooftop and a good chunk of the masonry
exploded.
"He's in serious trouble," thought Jupiter, then had to
dodge the huge fist of Carbonius.
A diamond-hard elbow slammed Sailor Mercury backwards. A
backhand headed for Sailor Moon's head was taken by Tuxedo
Kamen's abdomen. Jupiter leapt into the line of fire,
blocking incoming blows, although the hard skin of Carbonius
hurt like a bitch.
The Dark Ronin looked into the street below, then had to
move quickly as Plutonius laughed and dove for the remaining
roof. It blew into shards, and the Dark Ronin fell towards
the street. He focused his gift to fly, but Magnesius was
there, and he flashed as bright as the sun.
He forced himself to get past the brightness and pain
and at least land on his feet. The best he could do was
land on his rear, sending a wave of pain shooting up his
spine. The two misshapen warriors landed before him, still
laughing.
"I can't beat them," he thought. "They're too strong..."
"ANDROMEDA SHOOTING STAR SHATTER!!"
A new voice cried this proclimation into the evening sky.
It was followed by silence. Then the night seemed to come
alive, tiny balls of glittering energy raining from the sky
like hail made of ths shards of stars. They blew holes
through Magnesius and Plutonius, who plummeted to the
street, and knocked Carbonius flat, which infuriated the
huge creature.
They all looked to the sky and saw a young girl adorned
in attire similar to the Senshi. Her outfit was white and
black, with a grey-and-white glittering star where a brooch
would be in the black bow. Her blue eyes surveyed the scene.
The poleaxe in her hands spun once and she dove for Carbonius.
Magnesius and Plutonius hauled themselves to their feet
and moved to help their leader. But the Dark Ronin dashed
out from behind them, his katana in both hands, the point
directed towards his rear, edge out. The razor-keen steel
sliced Plutonius open as he passed. Without pause, the
dark man flicked his wrists forward, his sword coming down
where Magnesius' neck met his misshapen body. But magnesium
is a soft metal, softer than that which made up the katana,
and this newest threat found himself falling in two peices to
the ground. Meanwhile, Plutonius bled his radioactive
essence into the evening night, the superheated matter
dissipating in the chilling air. Soon he was less than
nothing.
The girl with the poleaxe seemed to be tap-dancing with
Carbonius, always one step out of his considerable reach.
"Hold still!" he bellowed.
"I'm smarter than that," she replied, and struck with
the poleaxe. Distracted by the weapon, Carbonius did not
notice Sailor Jupiter until the tall girl planted a solid
jump kick on the creature's head. By now, Sailor Moon had
come to, and she watched as Jupiter and a Sailor-clad girl
she didn't recognize moved away from Carbonius to renew their
attacks. But Sailor Moon had other ideas.
"MOON PRINCESS HALATION!"
Caught off-guard, Carbonius had no time to change his
structure. He screamed as his legs disintegrated... Sailor
Moon was still lacking a fraction of her strength to hold her
weapon aloft. They all moved around his now immobile form.
"You think you've won?" he screamed at them. "My Lord
Kartaron will have final vengenance on you all!"
"And who is that?" asked Sailor Mercury, holding her
chin where she had been elbowed.
"He is your doom! The doom of this entire planet!"
"Where can we find him?" Mars demanded.
"He will shake the very ground you stand on!! Metal and
earth are his weapons and companions! He is invincible!! He
is..."
Before he could finish that particular rant, the Dark
Ronin *moved*. Jupiter fought the urge to rub her eyes. One
moment, he had been beside the new Sailor. Now, a fraction of
a heartbeat later, he stood beside the tall girl, on the
opposite side of Carbonius...who had stopped in mid-speech.
His head rolled backwards and his form disintegrated into very
fine black powder, like pulverized coal.
"Wasn't that a little extreme?" Venus asked as he
sheathed his katana.
"I just wanted to shut him up," he replied softly, and
nearly collapsed. Jupiter caught him.
"Are you all right?" she asked.
"He's very weak, after fighting those new warriors," the
new Sailor replied, walking over and getting under his other
arm. "Dark Ronin...can you get back to your home?"
"I think so..." he replied, as if in pain. He closed his
eyes and groaned. His cloak moved like a living thing to
enshroud him and he shot up into the air and was gone.
"Who *are* you?" Sailor Moon asked the other girl.
"I am the Guardian of the Cosmos," she replied. "I go
by many names on many worlds... but you may call me Sailor
Andromeda."
"What..."
Before she could ask further, Sailor Andromeda spun her
poleaxe and struck it's pommel on the ground. She turned
into what looked like pure, tiny stars which flew off into
the night.
"Wow," Sailor Venus breathed.
"She's pretty powerful," Sailor Mars observed.
Sailor Jupiter walked off in silence.
"Where're you going?" Sailor Moon asked the tall girl.
"Home," was the reply. The unadded statement that
they all knew she was thinking was, "I need to see him again."
*
Mako made it home a few minutes later. She found him on
the couch, his right arm draped over his eyes.
"Are you all right?" she asked.
"Just a little tired is all..." he replied, but she
could tell there was more to it.
"Did you throw out your back or something?" she asked.
"You could say that."
"Hikari...you ever wonder what you would look like in
a grey cape and cowl?"
Mako nearly smacked herself.
"Wonderful, genius," she thought. "The cutest guy in
your life and now you're going to totally freak him out..."
But to Mako's surprise, he rose from the couch and
walked to her. Seeing the look in his eyes, she took a
step back.
"What is it?" she asked.
"I remember..." he said. She took his hand.
"Your memory is coming back! Tell me what you remember!"
"I...I remember...you, Makoto."
Her mouth dropped open and she gasped.
"I remember the gown you wore that night, when Jupiter
was attacked. I remember saving you even as we realised how
much we meant to each other. I remember...I remember
teaching you to harness the lightning, teaching you to fight,
to defend yourself, and I..."
"Are you saying...you know me? You knew me before I
found you?"
Hikari nodded once.
"Yes. You are the Princess of Jupiter, lost these many
thousands of years..."
Mako covered her mouth. At the realisation, the sign
of Jupiter glowed on her forehead.
"Oh my God," she thought. "Then he must know that I'm
a Sailor Scout..."
He walked over, took her shoulders in his hands, and
kissed the symbol. She found herself trembling.
"I fell through eternity for you, Makoto. I love you.
I always have. And I always will."
And she remembered.
It had been so long ago, and she really had not wanted
to attend *another* public speech. But, she did love that
dress. And *he* might be out there. So she had let her
father drone on to the heads of state, as impatient as she
was. She wanted to get out there! She loved being with
the people.
Finally, they had moved out onto the veranda. She
looked over the faces in the crowd for his... and he was
not one to disappoint. He was right in the front, although
he seemed out of place with the stuffy ministers and
overconfident generals. But he looked quite dashing in
his royal uniform, the medals glittering on the black
fabric on his chest, his cape drawn close. His eyes,
that wonderful blue hue, locked with hers, and it took
all her strength not to melt on the spot.
She moved forward, to talk with the people, and to
him especially. She didn't want some stuck-up prince...
her teacher was so much more understanding, warm, and
open than they, not to mention funnier and a light-year
more handsome. She was about to desend to him when the
alarms sounded.
Before she could react, he had grabbed her and pulled
her around the side of the building.
"Hikari, wait!" she cried.
"No time," he replied. "We must get you to safety,
m'lady."
He made a gesture and a portal opened before them.
"I can't leave you!" she yelled over the howl of battle.
"You must! You are the only one who can escape to the
Moon and tell Queen Serenity what is happening here!"
"I can't!" she repeated. "I love you!"
She instantly wished she hadn't said that. She would
be in so much trouble if her father found out. But after
a moment's shock passed, he took her into his arms, and she
held him back, for everything she was worth.
"I love you, as well," he whispered, his words touching
her at her very core. "I always have. And I always will.
That is why I must do this. But I will come for you one day.
Farewell, my princess."
And he had pushed her into the portal.
She had called his name as she fell towards the Moon...
She whispered it now, as his arms slipped around her. She
found herself holding him back, still unable to speak. It was
as if the power of the moment had robbed her of the words, but
none were really needed. They had found each other, the two
halves of a previously seperated soul, and the reunion was as
silent as is was long-awaited and peaceful. Surrouned by
the chaos of Kartaron's war on the Senshi and the Dark
Ronin, in the center of this storm, the two had finally
reunited.
Just as she felt she finally had the words to say,
Makoto's communicator chimed, breaking the silence like a
martial artist splits a board with his bare hand.
"Mako, it's Usagi. We need you at the Temple right
away! It's serious!"
Makoto winced, eyes closing, tears rising unbidden. She
tried to blink them away as she looked up at Hikari. Never in
her life had she seen the love, compassion, and understanding
that met her gaze. They both knew that she was needed, not
just by Hikari, but by the entire world.
But for this moment, one single point in time, all Mako
cared about was the man holding her. And she did not want
to let go of him.
"Mako? Are you there? Makoto, come in!"
Her reply was a pained sigh.
"Makoto...!"
*--*--End of part 4--*--*
*snif* Sorry about that, guys... but a penultimate
chapter should leave you wanting more. I hope I did that...
and what did you guys think of Sailor Andromeda? Pretty
cool, ne? Anyway, the defication is about to hit the
circulation device, so you dare not miss Part 5! Sayonara
until then!
Joshua Loomis ("`-''-/").___..--''"`-._
English Major `6_ 6 ) `-. ( ).`-.__.`)
& (_Y_.)' ._ ) `._ `. ``-..-'
Jedi Master _..`--'_..-_/ /--'_.' ,'
(il),-'' (li),' ((!.-'
email: jeloomis@planetx.bloomu.edu
cougar_jel@hotmail.com
homepage: http://members.xoom.com/cougar_jel/
"Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" -Percy Bysshe Shelley,
"Ozymandias"
"The lunatic, the lover, and the poet Are of imagination all compact."
- William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream
(Act V, Scene 1, l.7-8)
"Try not. Do. Or do not. There is no try."
-Yoda
"The worst foe lies within the self."
-Parasite Eve
"Faith can move mountains. Lack of faith makes them out of
molehills."
- The Sage, "Ziggy"
Follow your heart and you'll never get lost.