Souls of Fire #6: Shade of Gray
Ranma 1/2 VS Sailor Moon
Written by Razorclaw X (spiceoflife@NYChotmail.com)
http://www.crosswinds.net/~slythe/sm/index.html
Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and characters belong to
Naoko Takeuchi. Ranma 1/2 and characters belong to
Rumiko Takahashi. Proper licenses belong to respective
properties and characters. The manga has precedence
over material in the anime.
This file can be freely distributed so long as it
appears in its complete form and proper credit. No
part may be reproduced for monetary gain without
permission from the author.
----------------------------------------------------
"I can picture in my mind a world without war, a world
without hate. And I can picture us attacking that
world, because they'd never expect it."
-- "Deep Thoughts" by Jack Handy
Severely dwarfing Shampoo the ghost dragon Deathclaw
stared down at the Chinese Amazon with his cold,
pupiless eyes. Fear froze her in place, and all
feeling left her body, yet she knew the engineer,
Taydome, was still hiding behind her.
Deathclaw peered at Shampoo carefully, his mammoth
head bowing low so his right eye could study her. "It
is not much, but you will have to do for now."
What was it that made Deathclaw so fearsome? Shampoo
raced to remember. Unfortunately for her, she was
about to get the answer first-hand.
The ghost dragon reared his head back, and extended a
boney claw toward her. Ethereal lightning raced off
his talons, skewering Shampoo through the heart. She
lurched forward in pain, and barely noticed Taydome
scramble even farther for safety. She stared down at
her chest, and saw the red crystalline shape emerge
from her body.
It was then she remembered: Deathclaw could not hope
to survive in the living world without a host.
Shampoo screamed in terror as the ghost dragon forced
himself into her soul.
---
Infirmary, Crystal Palace
"Neo Queen Serenity," Shizuka said, addressing the
monarch of Earth, "it is to your advantage if you would
allow me to leave the palace at once. I guarantee
you won't like what's coming."
"Deathclaw," she knew. "It was the one kami we could
not destroy during the war." Serenity glanced toward
Shizuka, and saw a certain paleness wash over her
features. "He is bound strongly to this plane. Since
we could not find out the reason in time we had to
remove him from this plane, for surely the ghost dragon
would inhabit one of our own bodies."
"You figured it out," the priestess replied. "I'm
Deathclaw's true host."
"Why?"
"Symbiosis," explained Shizuka. "Deathclaw requires
a powerful host to remain in the living world. I
require that which fulfills my corrupt soul. Unlike
the others, who surely fear having their soul held by
an undead monstrosity, I do benefit from the
symbiosis. I can feel him coming now."
---
Control Center, Mishima Heavy Industries
"Crap, what the hell is that?!" Shion cried, watching
on the viewscreen as Deathclaw slammed his claws
furiously against the Crystal Palace's energy shield.
In the shockwaves of the attack the Mishima robots
flew off in all directions, smashing and exploding as
they crashed.
"I don't believe this," Ayame said, shocked. "I
never imagined the beast could be this powerful." She
turned toward the mercenary. "Recall our people, we
can't lose them to that thing."
In an instant Mousse appeared in the control center.
"You mind explaining to me what that thing is doing
here?!" he demanded. "It almost killed me!!"
"He appeared out of the rift Shampoo and Taydome made
at the park," Kanna answered. "Deathclaw looks very,
very mad."
"So where's Shampoo?!" demanded the weapons master.
---
Internal Security, Crystal Palace
"Oh, that's great," Sailor Mars exclaimed, pointing
toward the main viewscreen. "We traded an army of
robots for that thing."
The three Sailor Senshi watched as Deathclaw pounded
the energy shield surrounding the palace with his
bone fists, his ethereal body seemingly just as solid
as the crystal that made up the buildings. Below the
rampaging kami the Fenril robots scattered to preserve
themselves from danger, but most were smashed from the
shockwaves reflecting off the shield. The Fenril
Knights themselves were scattering in all directions,
and at least one of them vanished into thin air.
"Don't you think we were better off when the robots
were shooting at us?" wondered Jupiter. "That dragon
could pound us all night if he wanted to, if he's
found a host."
"Face it, he wouldn't be hitting us this hard if he
didn't have one already," Venus pointed out. "I don't
know why he's after us like this... but the generators
are being sucked dry. We'll run out in a matter of
hours than days."
Mars nodded. The Fenril robots were armed with
gattling cannons, which required bullets, and bullets
are in short supply on Earth. Assuming they had to
manufacture the bullets themselves, and considering the
lack of raw material, Mars hoped the Fenril could not
keep up a constant attack.
She was only partly right.
What in the world was Ami doing? she wondered.
---
Infirmary, Crystal Palace
"It's all up to you," the priestess of Genbu said,
folding her arms. "Let down the shield, and let me go,
or Deathclaw can do it for you."
Ranma watched the exchange curiously, her eyes
turning from Shizuka to Neo Queen Serenity. There was
an obvious danger from allowing Shizuka to leave in the
middle of an attack, as there was no guarantee Shizuka
would keep her word. On the other hand, she was right
about Deathclaw; the shockwaves of the ghost dragon
pummeling the shield could be felt within the palace as
well as without.
Either way, the martial artist knew she wasn't
getting out this time.
"Shizuka," the queen said, "if I allow you to leave
the premises, you must promise not to destroy us in our
moment of weakness. I know this is much to ask from
the one you believe is a murderer, but trust begins
when both sides take the first step together."
"Very well, then," Shizuka answered, a slight hint of
anxiousness in her voice. "I'll meet you outside the
gates, if you please."
The queen nodded in understanding. "Please do not
take long."
Ranma and Shizuka watched as the queen left, shutting
the door behind her. Instantly Shizuka was on her
feet, and gathering her scattered equipment, and
finally slinging the fire buster over her shoulder.
She turned and grabbed Ranma by the arms, pain betrayed
in her eyes.
"Ranma, listen to me," she said seriously. "You have
to stay here, and find a way to beat them. I was going
to do that myself, but I attract too much attention to
myself. You don't... just stay as a girl for a while
longer."
"As if I had a choice," Ranma replied. She did not
want to think of what the Sailor Senshi would do to her
if they found out her secret.
Shizuka reached into her pocket, producing a small
transmitter, and pressed it into the martial artist's
hand. "Keep this... when you need to make a quick
getaway, just give it the priority one extraction
signal, and the Dragonfly will come for you. Don't
even think of doing it while the shield's up, or the
Dragonfly'll never make it."
Ranma nodded in understanding. "Look, don't do
anything crazy, okay? You take care of yourself."
Shizuka offered a quick smile despite herself.
"Well, you know me... shit happens all the time."
Quickly letting her go, the priestess quickly bolted
out of the room, leaving Ranma alone to herself.
"'Stay out of trouble' wouldn't have helped," she
decided, shaking her head. "You're so reckless. Just
don't die, okay?"
---
Shizuka stepped outside the palace for the first
time, her sandals clomping against the crystal surface
that lead from the palace to the gate. Neo Queen
Serenity stood near the gate, her back turned,
staring at the rainbow energy rippling around the
energy shield.
For a moment the priestess thought to annihilate her
enemy, but Deathclaw was calling. She stared upward,
and for a second she and Deathclaw stared at each
other, the one second being the only detectable
cessation of the attack. She felt the torment of the
host... Shampoo... her terror... through the ghost
dragon's pupiless eyes.
Shaking herself out of her reverie, Shizuka made her
way to the gate, at Neo Queen Serenity's side. "I'm
ready."
It lasted only for a second, but to Shizuka it lasted
forever. The moment the shield opened up Deathclaw's
essence lanced out at Shizuka's heart. She barely
noticed Shampoo's body drop from the air and land in
the palace's lawn. She barely noticed Neo Queen
Serenity's shocked surprise. She barely noticed her
soul get clawed out of her heart.
Time ceased to matter to Shizuka.
---
"That cannot be!" Neo Queen Serenity gasped. She
watched as Deathclaw extracted Shizuka's heart crystal,
and shielded her eyes from the ethereal light.
The heart crystal, jagged as it was, glowed with
great intensity. As Deathclaw's essence merged with
the crystal the queen saw it grow slowly, becoming more
polished and symmetrical. As the last of Deathclaw
merged with Shizuka's soul the brightness dimmed to
nothingness, and a curtain of silence fell upon the
palace.
The entirety of the ghost dragon gone, Shizuka's
heart crystal returned to its owner, and the priestess
of Genbu collapsed on the ground.
In all the confusion, the three Sailor Senshi
appeared around the queen unnoticed.
"What was that?" wondered Venus.
"Why're the shields down?" demanded Mars. "And what
happened to Deathclaw?"
"There is not much time," Neo Queen Serenity
interrupted. "Leave these two outside the gate, so we
may turn the shield on once more."
"Why...?" Jupiter was about to say.
"Trust begins when both sides are willing to take
the first step together," the queen answered. "Allow
me to keep this promise."
---
"Cool," Miranda Kusao said, rubbing her eyes to make
sure she wasn't hallucinating. "The shield's down!"
She stared at the bare wall, running with all her
speed that her feet would carry her, and leaped.
Only to slam face-first into the energy shield.
Miranda was thrown back to the ground forcefully, but
she got up herself despite the pain.
"Dammit," she cursed, slamming her gloved fist on
the pavement. "So close...!"
---
Pantyhose Taro chuckled to himself as he watched
Miranda bounce off the shield from the inside of the
palace walls, folding his arms.
"You foolish Rubber-bitch," he said, "you were always
too slow to take advantage of opportunities like this."
---
Control Center, Mishima Heavy Industries
When Kodachi and Miranda entered they were carrying
the unconscious Shizuka and Shampoo in tow on makeshift
stretchers.
"Shampoo!" Mousse exclaimed.
"Stop yellin'," complained Miranda. "She's out cold,
and for a good long while, perhaps."
"Well, that accounts for everybody," Ayame decided.
She glanced toward Kanna. "Except for Pantyhose Taro."
"He's likely within the palace walls," Kanna replied.
"The prism isn't responding to the recall order...."
"Or he ditched it," the leader pointed out. "Either
way, he's not coming back."
"You sure this is such a good idea?" asked Shion.
"I mean, letting him go like that?"
"We'll know for certain soon," replied Ayame. She
turned toward Miranda. "Miranda, you're going to watch
him."
The martial artist planted a hand over her chest.
"Me? You've got to be kidding."
"No, I'm not."
"You're just saying that so you can get rid of me,"
Miranda persisted. "Ever since you took over you've
had it out for me, always throwing me with the most
dangerous guy around. So how do I know you're not
trying to kill me, too?"
"If I wanted to kill you I could've done it a long
time ago."
"You can say that all you want, but I'm not dying for
you."
"This battle goes beyond our petty differences,"
Ayame assured her. "Right now, I don't give a crap
about who you were before, because everything's
different now. I've got no time to dwell on the past
battles, I've got to look forward to the future
battles, and so should you."
Groaning, Miranda flexed her right fist. "Fine, I'll
go...."
"Don't let him know you're trailing him," the leader
suggested. "Pantyhose Taro is a trained hunter; he can
outsmart anyone hunting him, I bet."
"What shall we do about them?" Kodachi asked,
pointing back to Shampoo and Shizuka. "As they are
those two are completely worthless."
Mousse bent down to Shampoo's level, and checked for
her pulse. "She's in a coma, I think... can't tell for
certain. But her skin is cold to the touch."
"She got infused with Deathclaw," Shion replied,
getting up from his seat to stand over the two girls.
He pointed toward Shizuka. "Deathclaw is in her now,
but something's wrong. Before, she said it took her
only five minutes to take control over the ghost
dragon, but...."
Mousse reached over Shampoo and checked the other
girl's pulse. Shizuka's eyes flinched slightly even as
they remained closed, and she gasped as if in pain.
He looked up toward the mercenary. "Get Master
Higure... he'll know."
---
Inner Sanctum, Crystal Palace
"If I had not seen it with my own eyes, I would not
have believed it," Neo Queen Serenity shared to the
three Sailor Senshi. "That girl possesses a pure
heart crystal."
"Are you sure it's not a trick?" asked Jupiter. "I
mean, how can these bad guys be as good as we are?"
"I'm not surprised," Sailor Mars replied. "It's
possible that we missed something completely obvious."
"Why do you say that?" asked Venus.
"The girl we captured... Shizuka... she has a good
heart," the soldier of fire explained. "These people
are no different than the Black Moon Family. They're
not fighting because they want to hurt the Earth, they
want to protect it. Their views conflict with our own,
and they're fighting because we're the ones who don't
want to understand."
"How can that be?" asked the queen.
"I don't know, but I've been thinking... ever since
we've started fighting them the Fenril Knights have
taken objection to being called that." She looked
toward both Jupiter and Venus, both giving a nod.
"Your Highness, we weren't going to bring this up until
we knew for certain, but...." Mars struggled to find
the right words.
"Death Phantom left the Nemesian histories behind for
us to find... on purpose," Neo Queen Serenity realized.
"He knew we would learn of the old Nemesian
civilization and of their seventeen champions, then
chose seventeen people to match that description
precisely. In effect, he tricked us into branding them
enemies automatically."
"He probably tricked them, too," Jupiter added. "I
don't think they really have any idea why they're
fighting in the first place."
"So they just think they're fighting for a greater
cause?" wondered Venus. She shook her head. "That's
not it; they really do know what they're after, but
it's not something Death Phantom should be after,
either."
"Shouldn't we ask Ami about this?" asked Mars.
"No," replied the queen. "Tonight, I want all three
of you to be on watch. There is something I must do
tonight."
"Do what?"
"I agreed to meet with Death Phantom in the Crystal
Garden, and for that, we must have the energy shield
down."
---
Although there was very few people wandering the
halls of the palace Pantyhose Taro found it necessary
to hide himself from view.
Now that he was inside, Taro had a time limit on
taking out Neo Queen Serenity, realizing the Sailor
Senshi could find him at any moment, if they even
suspected he was in the palace at all. Not only that,
but his former allies had time on their side as well,
for, with their ghost dragon and robots on their side,
they could bring down the energy shield in no time
flat.
But none of them would get in the way of the queen,
he vowed. No one would get a shot at the queen of
Earth except Pantyhose Taro.
---
Crystal Garden, Crystal Palace
It was difficult to persuade the three Sailor Senshi
to remain away from the interior garden of the palace,
but Neo Queen Serenity knew that if Death Phantom
was risking everything to enter the enemy's home by
himself, she had to repay it in kind.
She wandered the garden, styled after a traditional
Japanese garden, designed to calm the mind and
encourage thought. Serenity stared into the pond,
where the koi swam about in one way or another,
seemingly oblivious to the chaos engulfing the city
around them.
It did not take long for her to feel the wave of
oppression, as Death Phantom's cowled face appeared in
the reflection of the pond.
"Death Phantom," she whispered calmly.
"I see you have come, alone," the last Child of
Chaos said flatly. "Excellent...."
---
The old man?! Taro shouted mentally from his hiding
place, spying on both Neo Queen Serenity and Wiseman
from the bushes. What was he doing here?
He strained his ears to listen.
---
"Why have you come here?" asked the queen.
"I believe you know the answer to that," Wiseman
replied, levitating in a seated position, his crystal
ball resting in his lap. "You want to ask me of your
burning questions about the Fenril Knights."
"Yet you were the one who called this meeting," Neo
Queen Serenity pointed out.
"Yet your curiosity is overwhelming. You wonder why
your sworn enemy has chosen to risk himself by coming
in the middle of the one place he risks destruction.
You may be surprised to learn that it no longer
concerns this shell."
"What do you mean?"
"Understand this, Serenity," Wiseman said, raising
his voice an octave. "This body has been in constant
exposure to the Black Crystal for far longer than any
other human. In result, it has been bombarded by its
magical energies the longest. Consider it a form of
radiation. What this radiation does, however, is
accelerate the projected evolutionary path of humanity,
and therefore, I am the pinnacle of human evolution."
"A skeleton?" the queen said in disbelief. She shook
her head. "I cannot believe such a thing."
"This shell you see before you is merely that: a
shell, a discarded body of bleached bone that should
have been lain to rest long ago."
As to make his point clear Wiseman's robe collapsed
over his skeletal body, crashing to the ground dead
and lifeless. Neo Queen Serenity gasped in surprise,
even when she knew Death Phantom was an energy being,
but was surprised to see that the crystal ball alone
remained levitating in the air. The image of a skull
appeared within its swirling contents.
"I understand," she said, her eyes drifting to
the useless bones and rust cloak at her feet. "The
final evolutionary path is a being of pure energy. It
is no wonder it is the preferred form of you and your
dark brethren."
"A psychic entity of purely mental power," Wiseman
agreed, the crystal ball glowing with each word. "I
require nothing of the flesh, nor of any bodily
function. Everything occurs to my will, to my thought,
and to my mind."
"And that is why we could not destroy you?" she
asked. "Your energy form was not destroyed by the
Silver Crystal's attack, but your physical form was."
"And since my physical form was psychically linked to
this being," the old man added, "you have severely
affected me as well. It took much time in a timeless
space to recover."
"But I do not understand... what does this have to do
with anything?"
"Unlike many other brands of Silence you were
threatened with in the past," Wiseman explained, "I
intended to use the Black Crystal to accomplish my
goal. Do you not understand what I wish to grant this
younger race?"
The queen lowered her head in consideration, then the
thought came to her. "The Black Crystal's dark energy
would have forced the evolution of Earth's population,
under your conjecture. In effect you are Silencing
the world by discarding the physical matter."
"I pondered over the subject for a long time," the
old wizard continued, "in a place beyond the reach of
time, and it was there I determined that Earth was to
take a special role in the cosmos. The Black Crystal
had already demonstrated what lay in store for
humanity."
"But it is an artifact of evil energy," Serenity
pointed out. "Why would it grant such a special boon?
As an artifact of evil it could have granted you your
evolution for the sole purpose of Silencing Earth."
"I master the Black Crystal, not the other way
around," Wiseman snapped angrily. "Such as you master
your Silver Crystal... or do you infer that it does
indeed control you?"
Wisely, Neo Queen Serenity kept her mouth shut over
that issue. "What need is there to force the human
evolution? What right have you to do such a thing?"
"The current fate humanity has been set toward is
paving a road toward disaster; it is the road you
pave."
"I did nothing but fulfill the betterment of the
human race!" she objected. "No one suffers any longer,
nor is there reason for conflict."
The crystal ball dimmed in intensity. "Earth is
destined for conflict; it is there humanity thrives."
"War?" the queen realized. "Is that the fate Earth
has in store for it?"
"Not the whole, but you are denying that part."
"Too many bad things happen because of war."
"There are some in the universe who are unwilling to
settle differences with talks. It is no use to set
all your bets in the hands of a few warriors-- your
Sailor Senshi. The era of the Sailor Wars is over; it
is irresponsible to deny this young race the ability to
use force of arms. This world may be at peace, but
it is that from beyond the stars which may be your
undoing. Your Sailors Uranus and Neptune know that
all too well."
This caught Serenity's attention in full. "What did
you do to them?"
"They are on the way to Earth, but I had two of my
followers intercept them before they could enter this
galaxy," Wiseman explained. "You see, the longer we
delay their arrival, the more time Earth has to prepare
for the inevitable invasion."
"Why?"
"The invaders know of the state you left Earth in,"
he answered calmly. "At this point in time they have
no reason to believe that Earth is a major threat, and
thus they are taking their time in arrival. But, if
they somehow know that we are preparing for their
arrival...."
"Who are they?"
"When you collapsed the void between planes," Wiseman
explained, "you generated a shockwave detected in the
undercurrents of the universe. In attempting to
destroy the mechanical plague that threatened this
planet a thousand years before, you effectively put
Earth right in their hands."
Serenity's eyes sunk. "The Mekani planned to do that
from the start, and we fell for it."
"The Mekani scouts trapped on this world had no means
to communicate with the rest of their Hive Entire,
since they were stranded on this planet thousands of
years ago through the efforts of both man and kami.
The shockwave was meant to attract their brethren
to this world and finish their mission: plunder,
multiply, perfect, and survive."
Neo Queen Serenity nodded, understanding the Mekani
mission well. The mechanical plague, an apt name, had
its sole purpose in the race's survival. In their
grand plan they would travel from world to world, wipe
out the planet's population, and plunder its natural
resources, leaving the world a barren satellite. The
locust-like metal monsters would move on to the next,
adapting to their new surroundings every step of the
way, until their never-ending goal was accomplished,
all the while becoming more perfect and more dangerous
to the next world. It was a fate worse than death.
In effect, the battle a thousand years ago against
the stranded advance party was a lose-lose war, and
humanity was the loser.
"The purpose of the Fenril Knights was to instill
the fighting instinct in humanity," she realized. "You
want them back the way they were before my ascension."
"The solution to your present situation is clear,"
Wiseman declared. "They cannot be stopped."
"Why? The wars are over; it is pointless to continue
this fight. If the Mekani are coming as you say, then
that is all the more reason to stop! If we put our
faith in the Silver Crystal, surely it will protect us
from the enemy."
"Ah, but how do you intend on destroying an enemy
that is aligned neither to the light nor the darkness?"
asked Wiseman, seemingly amused by the situation. "Had
I the means to wipe out the invasion hive I could have
done so on my own with the Black Crystal."
"How do you know if your Black Crystal has no
energy in it?" asked Neo Queen Serenity.
"So... you are aware of my weakness."
"Even though you have captured my city you cannot
harness the heart crystals under your power directly.
They are protected by the power of my crystal."
"Ah yes, your Silver Crystal. Do you expect to
defeat the Mekani with it? How much of your precious
energy are you willing to throw away annihilating a
harvesting force?"
"You're afraid of them," the queen realized. "You
cannot defeat them yourself, and now you are asking me
to destroy them for you?" She shook her head. "Is
that your game?"
"It seems you're getting too smart for your own
good," the old man noted.
"We fought so hard to make sure there would not be
any reason to fight!" she cried. "Humanity should
not have to know the horrors of battle, or of
disease, hunger, death, or hate. We have done so much
for them, and I cannot simply take it all away!"
"And you would corrupt the Purity of this younger
race with your own ideal," Wiseman countered.
"There can be no room for your evil where love and
justice prevail," the queen declared. "Humanity is
Pure in its present state of peace and harmony. You
and your dark brethren are not welcome in this
universe."
"I see," Wiseman said. "Then there is nothing more
to say."
"Perhaps," he added, the skull within the crystal
turning away, "if you became as old as I, then you
would understand these short-term trivialities are
pointless to an immortal."
The queen's face washed over with confusion, and
the skull seemed to chuckle at the ironic remark.
Slowly, the discarded cape and bones reemerged from
the floor, resuming its former shape of the old man.
"Or perhaps you need a little encouragement," he
suggested cryptically, vanishing into the darkness.
Neo Queen Serenity had little time to sigh when she
felt another behind her.
Screaming a war cry, Pantyhose Taro leaped from his
hiding place, intent on destroying the queen of Earth.
---
Miranda Kusao paused to consider her situation as she
watched Neo Queen Serenity try to flee her attacker,
making no move to fight back. She dodged each blow
with great dexterity, and the martial artist had to
admire her tenacity despite her pacifistic view.
She had absolutely no trouble getting into the palace
walls this time; a good stone throw was good enough to
show her that the shield was indeed down. Certainly,
the internal security beefed up the guards, but guards
were no match for the high-tier martial artist. She
knew well enough that the clock was running; the guards
would be on to her at any minute, looking for her.
The problem presented before her, however, was an
interesting dilemma. She heard every word Neo Queen
Serenity and Wiseman said, and had a considerably small
amount of time to digest it. Now the key to the future
was at Pantyhose Taro's mercy, because she refused to
instigate battle any longer.
On the one hand, Miranda could allow Taro to
eliminate the queen, and allow Ayame to set up her own
world order. After all, being called 'evil' wasn't
exactly a flattering comment on her person. And of
course she was the one who mercilessly slaughtered
millions of 'evils' to build her glass planet.
On the other hand, Wiseman did say that it was Neo
Queen Serenity's path to guide humanity's future
toward the vision Ayame shared... even if he was only
goading her toward it at the time. The old man was
practically asking for her help, in his own way, of
course. And she didn't really like Pantyhose
Bastard at all.
She clenched her fists together, unsure as to which
side she should be picking.
---
"Why are you doing this?!" Neo Queen Serenity
shrieked, feeling that she was running out of running
room.
The Fenril Knight threw more punches as he went. "I
seem to recall that you're the one responsible for
sending certain people to Nemesis!" he hissed. "You
know, people you didn't like?"
She fell down, tripping on her own feet, and the
enemy martial artist was on top of her. "You see, I
did some checking of the records... there was one
person I was particularly interested in seeing again.
You know... the one person that could change my name,
by law of my people... Happosai!"
The name did not ring any bells for the queen.
"Old lecher, tough martial artist, certainly," he
conceded. "But he named me, he gave me my name... and
he was the only one who could change my name. And you
removed him from Earth, banishing him to Nemesis, where
he would grow old, die, and leave me to my fate."
"No..." the queen uttered, closing her eyes in fear.
Raising a fist high, he cried, "You sealed your
fate when you sealed mine!!"
Queen Serenity heard a high-pitched whine, and opened
her eyes a crack to see that her attacker's arm had
been cut, and he was stepping back in pain.
"Pantyhose Taro," a new voice shouted, "it's time to
die, traitor."
---
Miranda leaped into action, throwing more of her ki
discs and forcing Taro farther and farther away from
Neo Queen Serenity. Standing with her back toward the
world monarch she decided to protect, she risked a
quick glance over her shoulder. "Your Highness, please
take cover! I'll take care of him!"
"Oh, which of us is the traitor?" Taro taunted,
raising his arm back in the air, seemingly ignoring the
pain. "You threw your lot with the Sailor Senshi!"
"You heard as much as I, I wager," Miranda shouted
back. "How could you... how could you choose the wrong
path?"
"You hate her just as much as I!!"
The martial artist shook her head. "No, she's not my
enemy. She was never my enemy. She, at least, is
trying to do right. Heartless bastards like you, on
the other hand, ARE my enemy!!"
"Feh," Taro snorted. "So the rebel needs a cause?
You'll regret that mistake!"
Both warriors charged, Taro throwing fists that
Miranda dodged, and Miranda throwing kicks which Taro
dodged, neither gaining a significant advantage. She
wheeled around quickly and slashed the air like a saw,
but Taro leaped over the attack. Miranda threw
herself into a back flip, throwing up her legs and
creating a vacuum slice that grazed her opponent's
other arm.
But Taro hardly let that bother him, as he quickly
reached out and grabbed Miranda's legs before she could
finish her flip. He threw her over his shoulder,
slamming her into the nearby pond and sending the koi
flying. Pulling herself back up quickly Miranda
threw several more energy discs, but Taro avoided them
with ease. She kicked one koi flopping near her foot
in frustration.
"Coward!" Miranda cried. "Why don't you stand and
fight?!"
"Don't you ever believe you can beat a first-rate
martial artist with second-rate skill!" Taro laughed.
"You're no match for me!"
"Try me!!" she shouted.
Full of anger Miranda charged, throwing several spin
kicks in rapid succession, forcing Taro to block them
all. Taro continued to laugh, shrugging off each
attack as if it was nothing. He caught her leg in the
last attack, and Miranda realized she was in trouble.
Swinging both her arms back she formed two more ki
discs and swiped them at Taro, but he pushed her back
at the last moment.
Collapsing on the ground, flipped onto her stomach,
Miranda stared at Taro's shoes. He kicked her once in
the face, nearly blacking her out, and rolled her over
on his foot.
He bent low enough down to her that she could smell
his breath. "Now, Rubber-bitch, it ends!" He raised
his right fist, and spread it open to expose the palm.
And the black Deathbuster star hidden beneath.
"Go to Hell, Pantyhose Bastard," she hissed, spitting
in his face, realizing it was all over.
Ayame, I'm not dying for you, Miranda thought. I'm
dying for planet Earth.
Miranda let out a scream as black lightning arced
from Taro's palm to her chest. She fought with all the
energy she could, but the augmented black energy could
not be denied, and Miranda saw her heart crystal being
extracted.
It's... it's... pretty.... she thought over the
agonizing pain. The light of her own crystal twinkled
against the night, but soon darkness engulfed it as it
was drawn into the Deathbuster star.
Collapsing to the ground limply Miranda felt spasms
overcome her entire body, and it was all she could do
to hang on to the last ebbs of life. She barely felt
Taro disappear from sight, but soon another took his
place.
Neo Queen Serenity.
"S... s..top... h..him...." she pleaded, her voice
cracking under tears. "Sto...p... him...."
---
She cradled the Fenril's head in her lap for what
seemed like an eternity, watching as the girl's life
left her eyes. The nameless girl twitched and spasm
no more as her body died without the soul that
sustained it, leaving a second heartless corpse in the
hands of the Sailor Senshi.
Tears streamed down her cheek as Neo Queen Serenity
lowered her head. "It... it... is not... right...."
Setting down the girl's head gently, the queen stood
up, wiping her tears with the back of her hand. "Stop
him," the girl had said, a plea from one who was an
enemy only moments before.
"A good, pure heart," she whispered. "Shizuka was
the first, you were the second... but neither of you
are the last.... No more good people should have to
sacrifice themselves because of what I did... no
more...."
She cast her eyes in the direction Pantyhose Taro
fled, a new sense and determination in her eyes.
Raising her hand in the air, she shouted, "Moon
Eternal, Make-Up!!"
---
"It is of no consequence," Wiseman decided, watching
the events unfold in his crystal ball. "Each event can
only work toward fulfilling my ultimate goal."
"Perhaps history is not doomed to repeat itself."
---
Taro pushed his way through the halls, knocking over
all the guards as he went. If Miranda was sent after
him, there was a good chance that Ayame was on to him
now. No matter, there was nobody on this planet that
could beat him!
Producing the prism shard given to him by Wiseman
long ago, Taro hurled it into a wall as he passed,
cracking the smooth crystal surface.
He made his way outside, congratulating himself that
he had not met any of the Sailor Senshi on his way
out. The wall was just there....
Vaulting over the wall, Taro congratulated himself
as the energy field was not there to stop him. He
broke off into a faster sprint through the streets.
"Hold it right there!"
For reasons beyond explanation Taro did so, as the
voice seemed to hold command over him. His eyes darted
about, searching for the source of the voice. "Who's
there?!"
Looking up, he spotted a silhouette against the
light of the moon. A Sailor Senshi.
But it was not just any Sailor Senshi, it was the
legendary Eternal Sailor Moon.
"Stealing the pure heart crystal of one of your own
allies, it's unthinkable! I stand for love and
justice!"
Taro's eyes narrowed. "'Love?' 'Justice?' What
meaning have those to a sniveling bastard as you?"
"I am Sailor Moon!" she declared. "In the name of
the Moon, I will punish you!"
Throwing out his right palm black lightning lanced
out from the Deathbuster star, but Sailor Moon was too
fast to get hit by such an obvious attack. Grinding
his teeth angrily, he barked, "Loony Queen! I am more
than a match for your Sailor Senshi, what makes you
think you're any stronger?!"
His eyes quickly darted for a moving shadow. "You're
too weak to defeat a true warrior as me! I know you're
too caught up in your fantasy world to fight! Give up,
and maybe I'll consider slaughtering you later!"
"That heart crystal doesn't belong to you!" he heard
her shout.
Good, he thought, following the path of her voice.
Keep talking.
"It's not about who's stronger, or who's got more
skill," Moon continued, "but who has the heart to do
what is right."
And he caught her in his sight standing on a wall,
obviously scanning the street for a sign of himself.
Quickly darting under the cover of the wall Taro
lunged straight upward with an uppercut, catching the
girl by surprise and sending her flying.
"Hunter's moon," he scoffed. "You're mine!"
He descended with another punch, but this time Sailor
Moon rolled away, and Taro smashed in a piece of the
crystal road. Lurching back, he waved his arm rapidly
to dull the pain, then launched another wild swing,
which she dodged easily.
"Excellent," Taro said, "you're getting better!"
She dodged another blow. "Why must we fight? Your
name doesn't matter! It's who you are!"
"My name is my LIFE!!" he screamed, throwing a quick
gale punch, sending Sailor Moon flying back far.
"Don't you DARE ridicule my life!!"
He watched her slowly get up to her feet, and
raised his right palm. "The time for talk is over;
I'll finish this just like I finished that wuss
Kusao!"
Black lightning raced from Taro's palm, eager to
draw out Sailor Moon's heart crystal, but a white
shield of protection formed a bubble around her. The
dark energy attack washed around the bubble harmlessly
as Sailor Moon gathered her resolve.
"Evil," she muttered. "He's pure evil...." Quietly,
she slid her rod into her hand.
"Now what?!" Taro yelped, panicked that his star was
not working.
"Rainbow Moon Heart Ache!"
He wanted to make up an excuse about it, wanted to
justify it in his mind, but the simple fact was Taro
was unprepared for the attack, period. The blast came
much too fast for the martial artist to react, and it
was all he could do to brace himself for impact.
---
Eternal Sailor Moon sighed wearily, scanning the
streets for any sign of her opponent's body. Finding
none, she realized her attack simply wasn't powerful
enough to knock him out.
"There'll be a next time," she vowed. "I can't sit
back and watch while my friends fight, and my kingdom
crumbles around me." She gazed toward the stars.
"Death Phantom, you won this round, forcing me to fight
again... but in the end it'll be your undoing."
---
Ranma had no reason to intrude upon the Crystal
Garden, but if someone stopped her she could always say
that the commotion caught her curiosity. In fact, that
would not be far from the truth.
"Damn," she cursed quietly, walking around the prone
body of Miranda, who looked as if she hadn't suffered
for too long. It was plain and clear that she was
dead, and although Ranma had no idea how she got inside
she realized that it was probably the Sailor Senshi
who did her in.
No, Miranda wasn't the most approachable person on
the planet, nor was she the nicest. She was a martial
artist, pure and simple, driven by nothing but hate and
revenge-- a focus so pure that it amazed Ranma that she
could stay mad for such a long time, even over the most
trivial of disputes. It was a certain tenacity, at
that. A certain devotion to the art.
Rage controlled so fine that she knew to find
something worth fighting for.
What she died for was unclear, but Ranma wasted no
time, searching her body for one object in particular,
knowing there was not much time left.
She found it hidden on the inside of Miranda's left
glove. Ranma quickly pulled out the black crystal
prism, holding it up to the light. Finding no obvious
imperfections with it she quickly pocketed it in her
shirt. Looking around to see if anyone was watching,
and finding nobody, Ranma stole her way back into the
halls.
Ranma stopped, a glint catching her eyes. She spied
a second prism, embedded in the wall where the cracks
were being filled in with the crystal growth. Ranma
determined it was not too late to remove the extra
prism, and pried it out before the growth could encase
it.
"Three," she counted silently. "What's this one
doing in here, anyway?"
---
Shizuka's Quarters, Mishima Heavy Industries
Ami was glad for the time to sort her thoughts out
as she sat watch over Shizuka, who was in a trance-like
sleep state, lying on her bed in her room.
Shion appeared in the rec room to summon Master
Higure, and Ami and Hokuto both accompanied them to see
what was up. Needless to say Ami was surprised that
the priestess managed to get back somehow, but there
seemed to be cause for concern. While Higure would not
reveal the exact nature of the state Shizuka was in, he
assured the others that she was trying to resolve an
internal conflict.
She volunteered to watch over her, while Mousse
volunteered to watch over Shampoo, who seemed to be
afflicted by whatever was affecting Shizuka. Ami felt
a tug of coldness in her spine when she thought about
it, but somehow she could not recall where she felt it
before. It seemed too familiar, and it seemed a voice
in her head was saying, "You."
Certain no one was listening in, Ami got up from her
seat and sat down on her knees next to Shizuka's bed.
The priestess's expression appeared rather serene, but
every once in a while her eyelids or lips would twitch,
as if she was having a nightmare.
"I don't know what's wrong with you, or what you're
thinking about right now," she said, "but one thing I
know, is that you can't stop fighting." Ami paused,
finding it somewhat ironic that she was advocating a
fight, abstract or not. "Don't give up; I'll find a
way to make certain that you won't have to face any
more hardships like this in the future...."
Because I'm going to shut this operation down, she
finished quietly. This conflict has gone on long
enough, and too many good people are getting hurt over
it.
---
Control Center, Mishima Heavy Industries
"You sure it's such a good idea to let her watch
Shizuka?" asked Kanna, carrying her dose of pessimism
like a sledge hammer. I mean, how do we know Shizuka
didn't turn traitor on us like Pantyhose Taro and Ryoga
Hibiki did?"
"You'll have to ask her that when she wakes up,"
Shion shouted over his shoulder from across the bowl,
sitting back in his seat and flipping through a
magazine. "That is, IF you think she's not diseased or
something."
"That's enough," declared Ayame from the center of
the bowl. She turned her eyes toward Higure, who was
standing next to her. "So what's the full story?"
The old man nodded. "Yes... well." He coughed.
"Had the others the ability to understand fully they
would know that Deathclaw has been separated from his
host for quite a long time...."
"Estimating a thousand years," Shion agreed.
"Deathclaw was effectively starving to death in his
dimensional prison, a void where the Kami Plane once
was. It is entirely possible the monster has gone mad
from being by itself for so long."
"As if it wasn't mad from being immortal?" Kanna
jeered, folding her arms.
"Also, Shizuka has not been in contact with her
symbiote for an extended period of time, and therefore
the two of them are... how shall I say... fighting each
other over the last box of Cracker Jacks."
"Swell," Ayame muttered, shaking her head. "So if
she wakes up Deathclaw might be in charge...."
"That's about the size of it, I guess," Kanna agreed.
"In other words we can't rely on her anymore." The
leader ran her hands up and down her face, utterly
tired of all the problems she was dealing with. "I'd
say this'd be a good time for Shampoo to overthrow me,
but she's out, too. What happened to her?"
"Apparently Deathclaw severely overpowered her
psyche when he took her as temporary host," Higure
explained. "I am uncertain as to how much this affects
her, but she, too, may not wake up the same. IF she
wakes up."
"Can't count on her, either," Ayame decided. "And
Ukyo, Sypha, and Cinder are on Nemesis... Ranma's still
missing... Ryoga and Taro jumped ship...." She sighed.
"I'm so running out of people it isn't even funny."
"If you want I'll do field work myself," Kanna
volunteered, standing up and scooping up her death
scythe that was lying against the control panel. "I
haven't been in a decent fight for... well... a good
thousand years or so."
Shion laughed. "I'll say."
"Actually, you can do better," the leader replied.
She raised her left wrist and pulled back her coat
sleeve, checking her watch. "I think I'm going to take
the next day or two off, so you want to be in charge
for a while?"
"Only so long as you take the job back later," Kanna
answered. "I didn't train myself to lead."
"Neither did I," Ayame said, chuckling as she turned
to leave. "It just happens, and you just learn to deal
with it."
Silently the three watched as their leader walked
out the doors, with her hands in her pockets, whistling
a tune to herself. All three stared at each other for
a moment, each wondering if Ayame was going to suddenly
change her mind and come back.
"Well," Kanna said, breaking the silence, "you know
what this means."
Shion nodded, smiling knowingly. "All expense paid
employee vacation... for two days!"
"Vacation?" Higure echoed, seemingly out of the loop
going on between the two. "I thought Ayame left you
to take care of business."
"She did," the Crystal Spider replied slyly. "And
now it's my order that each of us take a break. I
could use a good dip at Atami about now."
"If I can get Ami to take care of the snake for me,
it's Vegas for me!" Shion declared.
"You sure they still gamble there?" asked Kanna. "I
thought gambling was illegal."
Higure sighed. "I envy you young ones; you always
know how to have a good time."
---
Central Park, Crystal Tokyo
Hokuto kept her cloak tight around herself, standing
alone in the park and staring straight up at the tear
in the dimensional fabric. Beyond the tear lay inky
blackness that stretched forever, but that was only to
the untrained eye; those such as she knew it was the
shadow stream.
The Mekani void-ripper had long since been removed
from such an open area, and the technicians did a
splendid job of cleaning up their mess. It was a
wonder that the Sailor Senshi did not seal the tear
while it was left unattended for so long; surely they
could detect the residual energy emitted by the shadow
stream.
It was of no consequence to Hokuto, however, as she
willed the liquid shadow to solidify around the edges
of the tear, clamping the hole open by sheer will.
With that business taken care of she concentrated on
the long shadow she cast, and spread out her arms and
cloak to make it bigger.
Stretching her thoughts Hokuto willed her shadow to
elongate, and at the edge a sharp spike of darkness
emerged. She shaped it with her mind, transforming the
rigid shape into a lashing tentacle, with a set of
barbed spikes at its end, and thrashed it around like a
morning star. Hokuto willed the tentacle's head to
split in two, creating a double headed weapon, then
allowed it to sink back into her shadow.
"Yes," she whispered. "The realm of shadow has
remained untainted in a thousand years. An untapped
source of power, no one but I, a Shadow Weaver, can
harness its power."
She walked under the rift, satisfied that it would
remain open without much effort on her part. On the
other hand, the Sailor Senshi would have a devil of a
time trying to pry out the solid shadow cap.
Sinking into her own shadow, Hokuto muttered, "There
can be no stopping our destinies...."
---
Ucchan's Okonomiyaki, Darkhold
Although the light of the sun was a distant memory
to the rogue planet known as Nemesis, the local captive
populace, if they were being forced to stay in Darkhold
at all, viewed this time of the day as 'night,' as they
regarded time reckoning on Earth days still.
It seemed a little silly to the okonomiyaki chef that
the one watching over these people was a simple shop-
keeper, the only overseer on the planet at all. Many
people believed, as they came and swapped stories when
they came into the restaurant, that Black Moon
renegades living in Darkhold's Palace of Solitude were
watching their every move, while others thought the
Fenril Knights were herding them like cattle in the
city. Former Black Moon people also expressed their
opinions, such that they saw that, while they regained
the home of their ancestors, this place was where they
truly considered home.
In that regard the former Black Moon people were the
ones who most readily adjusted to their new
surroundings, and they turned out to be a more
independent lot than Ukyo thought. One thing was for
sure, they wouldn't help unless they were asked. Not a
day passed before maintenance droids stared appearing
again on the streets of Darkhold, much to the dismay
and fear of the Crystal Tokyo residents.
Fortunately, no one decided to open a riot session
for the people, but, on the other hand, Ukyo had no
idea what she was supposed to be doing.
She considered contacting former Black Moon warriors,
to recruit them to her watch, but thought better of it,
realizing they willingly surrendered to Neo Queen
Serenity. While they were indeed a people apart from
humanity, none appeared to have the inclination to
change anything. It was if someone sucked all their
reputed zeal out of their bodies, and they were but a
cinder of their previous flame.
Cinder, she thought. Both he and Sypha were supposed
to be fighting two outer-planet Sailor Senshi, but
neither of them took the time to step into her
restaurant, even for a social call. Neither warrior
she had heard from for a long time, and while she
hardly missed them Ukyo preferred to know what they
were up to while they were within her territory.
She produced her prism, and considered taking a trip
down to Wiseman's hidden citadel, but thought better of
it, as there was the off chance that she would share
company with that dried-up old man.
"Ukyo," she heard Konatsu say from the back room.
"What should I do with these boxes?"
The okonomiyaki chef laughed to herself, remembering
that there was no real source of food on the planet,
and yet, she was getting supplies in regular shipments
from Earth. It was a good thing nobody figured out her
'trade secret' yet, but the people were too distracted
with eating real food rather than living off the weird
water.
On the other hand, Cologne was getting suspicious.
It was likely time to come up with a cover story.
"Just leave it there, I'll take care of it later,"
Ukyo replied.
Well, she decided, even if business was limited
to a city, a monopoly on the food couldn't possibly
hurt the restaurant's killer income.
---
Observatory, Palace of Solitude
If one stared into the night sky of Nemesis, be it on
the dark side, or the slightly brighter sunny side,
there was no mistake that a set of four comet-like
objects were circling each other. Two of those comets
were a distinct blood-red, similar to fireballs, while
the other two were more whiter: one with a bluish hue,
another with a greenish-hue.
However, had any of the residents of Nemesis cared to
view them in a telescope, they would have seen that
it was four warriors fighting in the airless sea of
space, each shrouded by a globe of shimmering energy.
The fireball that was Cinder, engulfed in magical
flame, rocketed and bounced off Sailor Uranus's energy
field like a Ping-Pong ball, but always having enough
power to rocket back for another pass. Steel clashed
against steel quickly, as the fire master Cinder's
steel claws clashed against Uranus's sword, neither
gaining an apparent advantage over the other despite
the dance Cinder was forced to undertake.
Sypha, the second fireball, on the other hand, seemed
to be having no such trouble with her nemesis, Sailor
Neptune, as she forced her to defend against her
instead. In an almost stationary position the black
sorcerer lobbed black energy bolts against Neptune, and
it was all she could do to either dodge or reflect the
incoming attacks, as Sypha was offering no openings.
Holding her crystal dragon pearl in her left claw she
slung magical bolts with her right effortlessly, and
each bolt in turn split into five different directions
as they reached a point beyond the origin.
It was an even battle, one whose outcome was
entirely uncertain, but to Wiseman, it served as the
greatest diversion of all.
---
Nemesis Space, Near Nemesis
"Whoever they are," Uranus muttered, just as her
fireball opponent rocketed away for another angled
pass, "they're good!"
Neptune agreed. "Who would've thought that the enemy
made it to this system before we did?" she said, her
voice carrying to Uranus's energy field in an instant.
"They couldn't have gotten here this fast."
"There's something wrong," the other decided. "These
machines are too good, but they're attacking in the
exact same pattern: relentless hits. It's almost as if
they're trying to keep us here."
"Nemesis is down below," Neptune pointed out, dodging
another dark energy blast. "If I'm not mistaken, there
are lights on down there."
Uranus risked a glance down at the black planet,
which, by every right, should have been abandoned and
lifeless. Yet, as Neptune said, lights were visible
from one of the cities, and if she remembered correctly
it was the capitol city.
"Droids," she hissed, anger rising. "Queen Serenity
couldn't subdue them all."
"How can that be possible?" wondered Neptune. "I
thought the invasion was thwarted."
"If we'd been here, it would've!" Uranus deflected
another blow from her enemy's steel claws. "If these
are the kind of guys Crystal Tokyo had to face, no
wonder it nearly fell!"
---
Throughout the many centuries of living on Earth,
Sypha found it far worth the effort to learn how to
read lips. As her black magic was affording her much
time to take such observations the sorcerer picked up
on much of what Sailor Neptune was saying.
The implications were obvious: they had no idea who
consisted the population of Darkhold at the moment.
Not only that, but Neptune hinted that they believe the
Black Moon was still active. Excellent.
It wasn't enough for the two of them to conceal their
true power and capabilities to their enemies, they had
to thoroughly humiliate the two girls in the process
of achieving their objectives.
Already her ancient mind began formulating a plan,
and Sypha knew it would be one the two Sailor Senshi
would regret dearly.
---
Outskirts, Crystal Tokyo
The word 'fugitive' was the last thing on his mind as
Pantyhose Taro limped his way out of Crystal Tokyo's
city limits.
He was certain that the rest of the world was aware
of the trouble going on in their world capitol, but it
seemed strange to the martial artist that no one made a
genuine effort to do something about it. Taro spied
trailers in the horizon on the road, taking up what
little space there was on the highway out. He had no
doubt it was made up primarily of news crews and people
who had nothing better to do than throw themselves in
the way of danger.
Taro hated those people equally.
Realizing he would have to take the long way around
them Taro walked to the edge of the highway and took to
the wilderness, untainted in its greenery by the
crystal sheen dominating the highway. He supported his
aching right arm carefully, even though it was held in
a makeshift sling out of pantyhose. Taro stared down
at the Deathbuster star in his palm, seeing it continue
to crackle with black electricity like a broken
machine.
In a sense, the star was a broken machine. Ever
since Neo Queen Serenity, in her Sailor Senshi guise,
blasted him with the enormous attack, the dark star was
having trouble actually working. Had he the
inclination to produce Miranda's heart crystal Taro
did not have the means to draw it out. He felt it was
still there, but the star would not respond to his
mental command.
Worst of all, he couldn't peel it off, and in result
the excess sparking energy was numbing his hand,
compounding on the pain the damn thing was sending up
his arm. He wished his whole arm was numb, but
cutting the circulation hardly helped at all.
"All I need is a good place to hide out and rest for
a while," he decided. Taro did not know how, but he
knew the arm, and the star, would heal itself in time.
A little time is all I need, and I'm coming back for
you, Sailor Moon, he vowed in his mind.
---
Shampoo's Quarters, Mishima Heavy Industries
Waiting ate inside Mousse, and sleep would not come
to him as he sat on a bar stool, squatting, at the end
of Shampoo's bed, like an owl watching its prey. No
position seemed comfortable to him, so the weapons
master decided that it was better to remain in one
uncomfortable position rather than try to stay in
several, one after another.
Shampoo had not tossed, nor turned, while in bed,
and, other than the fact that she was breathing, anyone
observing her would think she was dead. Mousse had no
idea what was running through her mind at the moment,
or if people in such unconsciousness thought that
actively.
But his patience paid off, and Mousse had to rub his
eyes to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. Shampoo's
eyes burst open suddenly, as if waking from a
nightmare, but she did not sit up in what usually
followed such an awakening.
In fact, she seemed perfectly calm despite her
startled expression.
"Shampoo!" he exclaimed joyously.
He suddenly wished he kept his mouth shut, as the
Amazon was instantly at his throat. She squeezed with
one hand tightly, and Mousse struggled to catch a
single breath.
"Where are they?" she demanded in a low, vicious
tone.
"W... who?" Mousse managed to ask.
"The ones who imprisoned me in the space of eternal
nothingness," she replied cryptically. Her eyes seemed
to glow faintly, but Mousse attributed it to the dim
lighting. "I want the one they call Sailor Moon."
Sailor Moon? Mousse thought. The name rang a bell,
but the lack of oxygen was finally overcoming him.
Frantically, he pointed toward his neck, trying to get
Shampoo to understand what he was requesting.
It seemed to work, and the Master of Hidden Weapons
was on the floor, rubbing his neck, breathing heavily,
trying to circulate the oxygen into his head. He
barely felt Shampoo tap her foot expectantly, and
Mousse knew it was no use to make her wait.
"I thought Sailor Moon was a legend..." he began.
"Oh, no, she's quite real," Shampoo corrected.
"Right," he said, nodding. "She disappeared into
the urban legends, as they say. People also say she
will appear in Earth's hour of need...."
"That time would be about now," the Amazon decided.
"Then my revenge will be swift."
"Shampoo," he dared to ask, "what's wrong with you?"
He felt her foot in his face, and knew that Shampoo
would never be the same after sharing a body with the
ghost dragon. Mousse stared upward at the ceiling,
and Shampoo stared down at him evilly.
"Your concern is touching," she said sarcastically,
"but it's useless. Deathclaw has opened my eyes, dear
Mousse, and her heinous actions will not go
unpunished! It will all begin, and end, with Death!"
---
Shizuka's Quarters, Mishima Heavy Industries
Ami was stirred awake when Shizuka cried out
suddenly.
She made her way to the unconscious priestess's side,
and found that she was back in her slumber. Except
this time, the girl's expression was that of fear,
worry....
And pain.
"What's going on?" she asked, although Ami hardly
expected an answer out of the priestess. "Shizuka,
please... you've got to let me help you."
---
She had no idea when it happened, but Ami realized
she was asleep.
No longer sitting in Shizuka's uncomfortable room
Ami stood within a vast plane of clear crystal,
stretching on to an infinite distance and disappearing
in the horizon. No features distinguished the land for
all the eye could see....
Save one. A black monolith, seemingly made out of
the same crystal, burst through the ground before her,
and Ami cried out in surprise. The dark sheen with
violet highlights reminded her of the blackness of
Death Phantom's Black Crystal, and just as the
comparison finished more crystal monoliths burst from
the ground around the first.
In the end it appeared to be half of the Black
Crystal, with the other half apparently on the other
side of the crystal floor. Black lightning crackled
between each dark spire, flowing with great energy.
"Isn't it pretty?"
Ami turned to her right, and saw Shizuka there,
standing with her right hand over her heart, staring up
at the Black Crystal in a longing awe.
Intuition told her this was not just a dream. "What
are you doing here?"
"Look at that, Mizuno," Shizuka directed, obviously
meaning the Black Crystal. "The heart of the people,
stuck between two worlds... the one we stand in, graced
in light, and the one on the other side, graced in
darkness. It's trying to become part of one: the light
we stand in. I belong to the other."
"You're wrong," Ami countered. "No human being by
their very nature are aligned to the dark."
The priestess laughed, and despite the lack of
walls it echoed and reverberated throughout the entire
world. She turned to face Ami, a twinge of amusement
in her expression. "Is that what you want to believe?"
she asked. "Do you think humanity is so innocent? Or
do you think," and to Ami's surprise, a deep, masculine
voice added to Shizuka's, "it is exempt from
responsibility?"
The girl's eyes flared for a second, and Ami took an
involuntary step back. She knew the second voice well
enough, and Ami wished she never heard it again.
"Deathclaw!"
"Why do you persist in your little game?" both voices
asked at once, each using the same mouth to speak.
"You've wasted your time, Sailor Mercury. Give up and
go home, then tell your master that justice is not the
only right in the world!"
---
The Next Day
Ami burst awake sweating, and realized that there was
someone at the door.
"Gee, sorry," Shion apologized. "Didn't think you'd
be still asleep."
She sat up in her chair, and turned toward the
mercenary hacker. His reasoning seemed peculiar on
its own. "Shion? What're you doing here?"
His answer came in the form of the serpentine
creature in his arms. "I need you to look after
Thanatos for a while, okay? I've got little time to
look after him, so while you're doing nothing I thought
you could."
Doing nothing, huh? "I'll be glad to."
Satisfied, Shion lowered himself and dropped the boa
constrictor of Shizuka's down on the floor, and the
snake slithered the rest of the way inside.
"Um, isn't there a pen for him?" asked Ami.
Shion shook his head. "Nah, Shizuka doesn't keep her
partners in cages, but you might want this." He
reached down to the ground outside the room, and held
a small cage out for Ami to see. Two small, white mice
scurried about in the cage, desperate to be free.
"You see, she thinks it's good that her partner keeps
hunting for food rather than be spoon fed, so when he
gets hungry let these guys loose."
"How will I know?"
"When he tries to open the cage himself, I guess,"
answered the mercenary, shrugging. "Thanks again!"
Leaving the cage by the door Shion left, and Ami
looked down at the snake with worried eyes. Thanatos
craned his head up toward her, and flicked his tongue
quickly.
"Well... nice to meet you, too," she said.
She sighed, wondering how much more she could deal
with before she really lost it. Pushing the snake
matter out of her head, Ami thought back to her
dream the previous night, and realized something
important.
Shizuka called me 'Sailor Mercury,' she thought, the
implications dawning upon her. Time's running out.
---
Control Center, Mishima Heavy Industries
Higure stepped into the command bowl, his sandals
making little noise against the steel grate stairs,
arms folded with his attention on Shion, who stood over
his usual seat, busy typing.
"I see you left some last-minute business," the old
man said.
"Yeah," Shion answered, unable to tear his eyes from
the monitor. "Just filling in a last-minute request by
Ukyo... just sending a transport tube up to her. She
says people are getting suspicious as to how she gets
her goods, so I'm giving her an illegal tube."
"Do you truly believe that a wise decision?"
"That's not my problem," the mercenary replied. "I
only make things happen, not carry them out. It's not
like she's the one getting all the droids we've been
making the past few days. At least this way it's
plausible."
Punching in one final key, Shion stood up, and wiped
his brow, satisfied at his work. "That should take
care of it; the beam should be warmed up by now." He
turned toward the old man. "Anything you want while
I'm in Vegas?"
Higure shook his head. "Unlike you or your friends I
no longer have the inclination to collect personal
items. More often than not they break, and then you
agonize on how to fix them. Only problem is, it was a
thousand years since that particular item was first
created, and nobody knows how to fix it, much less
create a new one."
"That's why you buy at least three," Shion reasoned.
"One to use, one for backup, and one to trade away."
"What of the others?"
He shrugged. "I only expect Kodachi to go out and
party; she can do what she wants, Ayame says. If the
others think about something, it's up to you, but if it
gets really hairy give Kanna a ring. I don't want to
be bothered, and I think Ayame doesn't, either."
---
Nemesis Space, Near Nemesis
These droids are annoying, Uranus decided as her
opponent continued to rebound off her sword after each
thrust.
However, a break in the monotony presented itself
when she spied her fireball enemy rocket in the
opposite direction, away and toward the other droid.
Uranus gave chase, wondering if the two droids were
going to double-team Neptune, for they certainly could
overwhelm her easily if they really were that powerful.
"Watch it, Neptune," she warned.
But the warning was unnecessary, as the second droid
was fleeing as well. Both fireballs were headed back
toward Nemesis.
"They're retreating," Neptune observed, a hint of
relief in her voice. "Why?"
"Beats me," Uranus replied. "Whatever it is, we
can't just let them get away!"
She willed her globe to carry her after the two
retreating droids, traveling just as quick as the two
were fleeing, maybe even faster. Neptune trailed
behind, matching a similar pace through the airless
sea.
She could hear them laughing at her.
"Something's not right," Uranus decided.
Neptune agreed. "There's no reason why they should
be retreating when they had the advantage...."
That was all that was needed to jinx the situation,
as both fireballs came to a complete stop. Both Sailor
Senshi halted as well, maintaining a safe enough
distance such that they could avoid whatever attack
they might throw at them.
Both fireballs died down into nothingness, and for
the first time the two soldiers saw the face of their
enemies. The first, concealed in midnight robes,
peered at Uranus with a large, red right eye, which was
shaped in a circle. Steel claws draped from the
sleeves of the robe as well as from the bottom; in
effect, the creature was robotic in form, and likely
had a good reason for concealing its body from view.
The second, however, appeared more exotic rather than
mysterious. A tall woman carrying regal airs, the
second enemy dressed in a long-sleeved red Chinese
phoenix court dress, heavy, black metal claws hanging
from the ends. Her long hair, reaching down to her
feet, were swept up to each side of her head, forming
two rather large pony-tails, each held by expensive-
looking Chinese ornaments. Her waist was tied so much
by a violet sash such that she appeared quite
serpentine in her dress.
Both were laughing; the first in a deep, cavernous,
slightly metallic voice, and the second with haughty
airs about it. Nevertheless, they were laughing, and
Uranus could find nothing funny about the situation.
"What's so funny?" she finally asked.
The answer soon made itself apparent, and Uranus
definitely knew it wasn't funny. As if discarding the
cloak of midnight shadow innumerable droids appeared
out of nowhere behind their two leaders, each armed
with all manner of banned and illegal weaponry. Their
number soon spread to above and around the two Sailor
Senshi, cutting off avenues of escape one-by-one.
"Trap," Uranus hissed angrily.
"This way!" Neptune cried, rocketing downward before
the droids could close off that avenue.
Uranus followed suit, and she risked a glance back at
the droid mob long enough to see the two leaders still
laughing, and their minions giving chase.
She almost ran into Neptune when another squad of
droids made their entrance, shedding their cloaks of
blackness. Uranus reached out and grabbed Neptune's
arm through the globe, and continued picking up speed
as the ever-growing mob gave chase.
Events repeated themselves five or six times before
it dawned on her. Nemesis was getting way too big from
the view.
"They're trying to corner us against the planet,"
she shared with Neptune. "These guys really are
clever."
"They planned out our escape path from the start, and
placed more of their army at strategic points just to
herd us there," Neptune added. "Even if we fought it
out back there they can still beat us by sheer
numbers."
"They may even get that yet," Uranus pointed out.
"On the other hand, do you think they really planned
for us to go down to Nemesis?" She flashed a
conspiratorial smile.
"Let's do it!" Uranus shouted, as both Sailor Senshi
plunged into Nemesis's atmosphere.
---
Command Center, Palace of Solitude
Cinder roared with laughter as he and Sypha appeared
within their base of operations on Nemesis, the capitol
city of Darkhold. He watched the main viewscreen as
the Sailor Senshi plunged into the atmosphere,
creating their own fireball as they descended.
"The fools," he hissed, "what do they think they're
doing?"
"Desperation," Sypha answered. "Watch."
---
Darkhold, Nemesis
Shaking off the heat associated with atmospheric
re-entry Uranus and Neptune flew through the dark
streets of Nemesis's capitol, obviously in its night
cycle, with a legion of droids trailing behind. Uranus
took it as a good sign that no more droids were
appearing ahead, satisfied that this wasn't part of the
enemy's plan.
"We can't get back to Earth at this rate," Uranus
thought out-loud. "We've got to ditch these tin cans
now."
Something caught Neptune's eye. "If that's what I
think it is, then we could get rid of most of them
there."
Uranus followed Neptune's pointing finger, and saw
what appeared to be a tall, black spire near Darkhold's
own lake. Despite appearing no more grand than any of
the other Darkhold structures she could see a faint
fountain of power radiating off the top, obviously
marking it as a power regulator of some sort, for
whatever the Black Moon Family used to power their
city.
It was perfect.
"Let's hope these guys are dumber than their
leaders," she decided.
---
Command Center, Palace of Solitude
"Brilliant," Cinder praised. "By entering Darkhold
proper they hold hostage their enemy. By luring them
to one of the five Dark Points that make up the outer
borders of the city they eliminate their locust
pursuers in one fell swoop."
He continued his speech as the power generator
erupted in a geyser of energy, taking with it much of
the droid legion. They headed off toward the next
closest outer point of the star-shaped Darkhold, a
mirror foundation of Crystal Tokyo. "See as they show
no regard for the enemy civilians, for they are as
that-- enemies. Watch as they sacrifice the lifeblood
of an entire city just to elude our mass-produced,
mindless droids."
The second generator fell, and most of the droids
were gone. Those that survived could barely keep up
with Uranus and Neptune, and they were satisfied enough
to slow down and pick them off with their own abilities
instead. "They believe they have the upper hand, but
they know too little of the truth. Ruthless as they
are, they fail to notice we are far more ruthless than
they."
"Had we allowed them to gather all the facts, would
they have acted differently if they knew they were
hurting their own people?" Sypha said, posing the
question such that it could not be answered. "Had they
known that their opponents were not mere droids,
perhaps they could have taken us seriously."
In an instant, the two teleported toward the center
of carnage, where Uranus and Neptune were finishing off
the last of the droids with their signature attacks.
Both warriors laughed.
"You!" Uranus shouted. "Your ploy didn't work!"
"It worked quite well, actually," Cinder countered
lowly. "In fact, it worked too well. Well done."
"Who are you?" asked Neptune. "Compared to these we
destroyed, you're no mere droids."
"In that you are correct," replied the hooded fire
master. "I am known as Cinder to your people, the last
of the salamander race of kami."
Cinder threw off his hood, and made his point clear
to the Sailor Senshi. His skin made primarily of
black, obsidian-like scales, the fire master's
otherwise flawless, proud, lizard-like face was marred
by two things: a mechanical eye where the left eye
should have been, and a steel jaw.
"Your people know me as Sypha Blade," the sorcerer
introduced, bowing. "Human shape I appear, but kami I
was born. We are the last of our peoples, and we must
thank you for taking vengeance for us."
"Kami? Vengeance?" Uranus shook her head. "What
are you talking about?"
Sypha extended a claw toward the destroyed spire.
"See this? The destruction you cause for your fellow
human race? It certainly is harsh to live in such
environs as Nemesis, but you make it much worse to live
in for the people from Crystal Tokyo."
"You can't be serious."
"Imagine, if you will, when we parade you two around
Darkhold, telling them of your misdeeds. Imagine how
it feels to be outcast from your own people, and lose
them altogether. Imagine what it is to be the last of
your race!"
"Get out of the way, we have no time for this,"
Uranus said with determination.
"Watch as our cause grows in support after your
treacherous attack!" Cinder cried, raising his claws
out, and throwing jets of flame.
---
Ucchan's Okonomiyaki, Darkhold
Repair had already begun on the two power generators
destroyed in the reckless attack by Sailor Uranus and
Sailor Neptune, with the maintenance droids working
ceaselessly for hours since the capture of the two.
Word circulated about the attack on their own people,
and while some believed it was an honest mistake, some
started to doubt their sailor guardians.
It made no matter ot Ukyo, she had her teleportation
tube.
When the restaurant opened that morning she made it a
point not to bring up the issue, and to neither
champion Cinder and Sypha or discount Uranus and
Neptune. Her role was only to listen, as it made the
patrons feel better. It also resulted in better
business.
Cologne finally entered the restaurant, intent in her
eyes, hopping in on her staff.
"Oh, hi," Ukyo waved, trying to sound cheery, but it
seemed too forced to her ears.
"I hear our city's stewards defended us from an
attack by Sailor Senshi," Cologne began neutrally.
"I heard the same thing. Isn't that weird?"
"Perhaps. On the one hand Sypha and Cinder are no
more human than you think I am. On the other, they are
very capable warriors, alone or apart, and proven more
than a match for the Sailor Senshi, Uranus and
Neptune, if they are being held in the palace."
"You think so?"
"Any uprising against a simple two opponents is a
dream now," Cologne concluded, shaking her head sadly.
"It appears this show of force will keep people content
for now."
"If not for the other thing, which is the Sailor
Senshi attacking us."
The old woman's eyes narrowed, and for once Ukyo was
glad there was no one else in the dining room. "In
that case perhaps your role in town is moot. There is
no more reason for you to remain."
Ukyo feigned surprise. "What?"
"Don't play with an old woman; I know you threw your
lot with them."
She realized that the hag figured out the truth. It
was there for anyone to see, but very few took the time
to put the puzzle pieces together. Konatsu could
live with it, at least. "So now what?"
"We'll see," she promised.
----------------------------------------------------
Author's Notes
Stay tuned for more.
--Razorclaw X (spiceoflife@NOhotmailSPAM.com)
http://www.crosswinds.net/~slythe/index.html
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