I just had to comment on the following scenes:
 

A roomful of politicians, city planners, district officials, and 
contractors were crammed around a large collection of portable 
tables which had been jammed together in the center of the makeshift 
assembly hall to form one large conference table. Sailors Mercury 
and Pluto watched the proceedings silently as the men of power 
attempted to plan a reconstruction schedule and budget for the 
ruined city.

"Look," a contractor growled. "The bottom line is, we're looking at 
several billion yen just to get foundations repaired and utilities 
reconnected. And that alone will take well over a year given the 
extent of the damage."

"I think we need to concentrate on first establishing more permanent 
relief camps for anyone who's not planning to pack up and leave 
Juuban," a councilman put in. "These people have lives, a lot of 
them are out of a job because the places they worked were 
destroyed...we've got to think about the people before we think 
about several square kilometers of rubble."

For several minutes, the committee bickered about reconstruction 
budgets, timetables, relief for the people, and the cost of setting 
up a permanent shelter camp. At length, the two Senshi glanced at 
each other, nodding.

Sailor Pluto stood, clearing her throat. "Gentlemen," she began, "if 
I may?"

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, whose presence was a direct result 
of the Senshi's attendance, nodded. "Yes, I believe it's time we 
heard what the Sailor Senshi have to offer."

Pluto walked to the head of the table with measured steps. "We 
believe we have a way to facilitate an expedient and efficient 
reconstruction of Juuban-cho which will only require measures 
equivalent to a temporary construction effort and a minimal budget 
on the part of the government."

The committee murmured amongst themselves. "Very well...we're 
listening."

Mercury rose, moving to stand beside Pluto. "As you've no doubt 
surmised, the Crystal Palace is entirely self-sufficient. Its power 
is generated by the lattice structure of the crystal itself, which 
is imbued with self-replicating energy whose properties even we 
don't fully understand.
However, what we do know is that the Palace is capable of expanding 
its own structure by expending its energy surplus into a type of 
matter replication." At the rather lost expressions on many of those 
present, she coughed. "The Palace is capable of growing," she 
clarified.

At this point, any observant Sci-fi buff would be setting off a few
warning lights and bells:  

A Von Newman (self-replicating) device, whose technology is not fully
understood, right in their own city? 

 

"I see," someone said. "So what does that have to do with rebuilding 
this district?"

The blue-haired Senshi produced a long, thin crystal out of nowhere. 
It was tapered to points at both ends, and seemed to pulse with a 
gentle prismatic light. "This crystal is an offshoot of the Crystal 
Palace, designed to function as both a beacon and an energy conduit 
that links back to the palace itself. I call it a 'Crystal Point'." 
Leaning forward, she began to push one of the myriad tables away 
from the gathering. "I advise everyone to stay back," she commented 
as she hefted the Crystal Point and drove it into the ground right 
beside the table. Pushing the furniture closer so that it was in 
direct contact with the glowing shard, she stepped back and began
tapping keys on her computer. In a flash of light, the ordinary 
wood, metal, and particle-board furnishing began to change...

Sailors Mercury & Pluto, as the Crystal spreads beyond the table, all
around the conference area, and beyond:   
(Said in unison, in an authoritative, multi-tonal, yet oddly
mechanical voice.) 

"We are the Senshi. 
Discussion is irrelevant.  There are no terms.  
You must unconditionally surrender.  
Resistance is futile. 
You will be assimilated into Crystal Tokyo.  We will add your
biological and technological distinctiveness onto our own.  Your
culture will adapt and grow to Love and to Serve Queen Serenity.
Self-determination is irrelevant.  
Resistance is futile. 
You must comply."    
 

There was a collective gasp from the assembly. 

"It...it turned into crystal!"

"That's amazing!"

The mayor of the ward rose from his seat and walked over to tap on 
the surface of the table. It lit up, bathing him in warm 
luminescence. "This is absolutely incredible! But how...?"

"When the Crystal Palace appeared, it didn't destroy the Hikawa 
Shrine. It absorbed the structures of the temple and integrated them 
into its own infrastructure." Mercury laid a hand on the smooth, 
glassy surface. "The Crystal Point doesn't possess a great deal of 
energy on its own, but it does have enough energy to self-replicate, 
provided it can find pre-existing matter to convert in a similar 
manner. This table is now generating energy of its own, as you can 
see, and can self-replicate just like the Crystal Point and the 
Palace itself."

Pluto moved among the assemblage, picking up another of the tables 
with an ease which disconcerted some of the men present. In a 
sudden, violent motion, she slammed the wooden furniture over the 
newly formed crystal. 

(Unfortunately, nothing happened, other than a somewhat muted "Ouch."
from Pluto, as the wooden table bounced back, unharmed.)

Mercury, in a soft whisper:  (Psst: the trick table is to _your_ left,
not mine.)

Pluto, looking at her sore hands: "_Now_ you tell me."
After picking up the proper table, and repeating the process:

The table in her hands shattered under the impact, while the softly 
glowing crystal surface remained unblemished. "As you can see," she 
remarked, smirking at the stunned expressions on the committee's 
faces, "the crystal is quite sturdy as well."

Mercury nodded. "The reason the Crystal Palace survived Jadeite's 
explosion completely intact is because, with the exception of an 
extremely powerful, sustained attack, it's virtually 
indestructible."

"So," another member of the Diet who was present said, leaning 
forward, "What exactly are you proposing?"

The two Senshi glanced at each other. Pluto nodded silently, and 
Mercury approached the crystal table, setting her compact computer 
on its surface.  The committee murmured in awe as a holographic map 
of Juuban-cho sprang right out of the tabletop.

Interesting: any new "Crystal" structures respond to similar
technologies already in use by the senshi?  They seem to be networked
to more than merely the palace "power" grid, as it where.

<Snip construction details>
 

"I guess the only question left to ask," the mayor put forth, "is 
what the Sailor Senshi demand in return for this miracle."

Mercury looked over at Pluto. The taller Senshi nodded, and moved to 
address the committee.

"In return for providing a fast, economical, and ultimately superior 
total reconstruction of Juuban-cho, we will require that the 
government of Japan first recognize the sovereignty of the Crystal 
Palace. Second, we will require that the Japanese government 
recognize the newly rebuilt district, 'Suishou-cho', as territory 
belonging to the city-state of Crystal Tokyo."

Pluto, as an aside to Mercury:  "It really doesn't matter what they
really decide, as long as we get to rebuild the district.  Our
technology would give the crystal palace de-facto control over the
district's water, power & voice/data grids. Still, it is always nice
to maintain the polite fiction of 'official approval' by the
established authority figures before taking over."

<snip cool chibi-usa bit>

"You can't be serious!"

"Why not?" Pluto asked, calm in the face of the furious storm 
surrounding her.

The mayor of the ward shot out of his seat. "You honestly expect the
government to just...just...just SURRENDER a large chunk of the 
NATIONAL CAPITAL to a bunch of girls in school uniforms?"

Pluto & Mercury:  YES.

 

"They planned it! The whole thing! The earthquake and all! It's a 
setup!"

"Bunch of...this is inexcusable!"

"Of all the nerve...!"

"GENTLEMEN! Please! Calm down and let's discuss this rationally," 
Mercury interrupted, her generally calm demeanor slipping a bit.

"Yes, I concur," the Minister of Foreign Affairs said, his calm, 
controlled voice somehow carrying over the pandemonium. "This is 
something that we must discuss with cool heads." As the shouting and 
exclamations died down in the face of two voices of reason, the Diet 
member cleared his throat, turning to face Mercury. "Young lady, 
would you mind clarifying and explaining the logic behind such a 
request? I mean no disrespect, but your companion seems...well..."

"Prone to drama and generally irritating?" Mercury laughed lightly. 
"Yes, she can be that way at times." Sailor Pluto made an 
exaggerated display of mock offense, which seemed to lighten the 
mood in the room a bit. Clearing her throat, the blue-haired senshi 
began in a serious tone, "I assure you, there is no conspiracy, 
plot, trick, or setup involved here. 

Pluto: "Not yet anyway.  It's been a bit hectic, these last few days,
and I'm used to somewhat longer range strategies."

When we earlier stated that we did not cause the destruction of 
Juuban, this was the truth. In fact, our King was killed in battle 
by the very monster which did in fact destroy the district.

"As my colleague has pointed out, however, we do consider ourselves 
to be a self-governing nation-state, a monarchy ruled by a 
benevolent queen. It is only natural that any nation would wish to 
expand its borders. This was once the way of many nations on Earth, 
including Japan."

"Yes, well..." The middle-aged diplomat coughed. "It's generally not 
a common practice for a nation to appear right in the center of 
another nation and start attempting a peaceful takeover."

Pluto, summoning the time key staff:  "Well, if you wish to stick to
traditional methods, I suppose we could comply and stage a small war,
after all."
 

Mercury winced. 

"The emergence of the Crystal Palace right in the middle of Tokyo 
was...unexpected." *At least, a few hundred years earlier than we 
thought it'd happen,* she didn't add. "There was a prophecy 
concerning our Queen which we were unaware of at the time."

"Oh? Please, enlighten us."

<Snip History lesson by pluto.> 

There was a long pause as everyone digested this. "Ahem...alright, I 
suppose that explains away the location," the Diet member spoke 
after a while. "That aside..." He steepled his fingers, leaning 
forward. "What you're asking is for the nation which prides itself 
on recovering from adversity and strife to hand over an entire 
district of the very heart of its capital city, with no reasoning 
aside from averting the time and cost of reconstruction." He
paused for a moment. "Putting aside diplomatic factors, that's not 
exactly a fair trade-off. Crystal Tokyo, as you call it, would gain 
territory and increase its citizenship potential. The true Tokyo 
would gain nothing in return."

"That's not entirely true," Mercury said. "We are more than willing 
to engage in trade with Japan, but more to the point, we offer..." 
She paused, covering a grimace. "We offer the government of Japan a 
strategic alliance."

There was a pause as the Minister of Foreign Affairs considered this
comment. At length, he stood. "I believe that, at this time, we 
should adjourn. This matter is moving beyond the scope of this 
committee, and it will be necessary to take the matter of 
any...alliances with the Sailor Senshi up with the Prime Minister, 
as well as a full session of the Diet."

Sailor Mercury nodded. "I agree, this is a serious matter that 
deserves serious discussion and consideration." She tapped some more 
keys on her palmtop before folding it up and banishing it to 
pocketspace. A thin rectangle of crystal popped out of the table, 
which she retrieved and offered to the middle-aged diplomat. "This 
is a full transcript of the meeting, including everything said about 
Crystal Tokyo by both Sailor Pluto and myself, and the offer we 
made." Showing him how to page through it, she continued, "Please, 
give this to the Prime Minister and anyone else you feel necessary 
to share this with, within the body of the Japanese government."

Mercury:  "Please ignore the fact that we recorded all this from the
table we just converted to crystal a while ago. 
Also: Try not to drop this transcript crystal in the floor of the Diet
or any other official government building, as it would force us to
apply to that building the same terms we just outlined for
Juuban-cho."

The man nodded, examining the slender tablet with curiosity. 

You know, I'd expect at least a little touch of paranoia at this point
from someone. It might just be me, but I'd expect someone to wonder
about all the crystalline stuff spreading around.

After all, they've just been told (and shown) that:

1. The palace is basically a Von Newman self-replicating device,
2. The inherent technology of it is not yet completely understood, 
3. That technology would be available to the public. 
4. Crystal Palace personnel have a lot of control over said 
   technology. 

Any self respecting security type would wonder about the exact amount
of control the senshi have over the palace and its technology.  Is
there any chance of the palace "running amok" and absorbing all of
Tokyo? (or beyond?) Are the Senshi willing/capable of doing
surveillance on those using/examining crystal tech? 
What happens to a place (legally and physically) if someone takes a
crystal point outside Juuban and uses it somewhere else? (At a
factory, at a mansion, in a motel room, etc.)  

Anyhow, love the story, and hope to see more of it soon.  
I like the way the palace staff seems to be molding itself into
aspects of the last generals, and can't wait to see where you take
that sub-plot.  
Also, after all the tough bad guys, it was nice to see Sailor XL
inject a little comedy into the mix.  
I hope we see more of her, along with the fates of Princess Wraith,
Goro, and the rest of the cast.  

-- 
"There is nothing in this world of value...
 Nothing worth risking our lives for...
	 ...except 'erhaps... 
	...what little we can create ourselves."
		Daisuke Ido (Gunnm / Battle Angel)
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