Solar System, the Orbit of Saturn, SY 68 (3060 AD, 3811 Years after the
founding of Rome, Juraiian Year 23224, Federal Year -926)

     As the blast of purple energy sent Pluto tumbling through space,
her uniform burnt away in several places, her hands badly charred, she
finally understood.  The crystal hides itself, and hides her...

     Vengeance floated above one of Saturn's rings, Wiseman floating by
her like a pet dog.  "YOU WILL NOT STOP ME FROM DESTROYING NEMESIS!  THE
BLACK MOON WILL BE DESTROYED!"

     Pluto had never been suicidal; she knew when to run away.  This
was one of those times.

******************

Black Moon Rising

Chapter 11:  The Angel of Vengeance

http://www.tass.org/~rhea/Stories/BMR     

By John Biles

******************

Earth, Crystal Tokyo, SY 68 (3060 AD, 3811 Years after the founding of
Rome, Juraiian Year 23224, Federal Year -926)

     The skies over Crystal Tokyo were brightly lit with the glow of
battle, as the Lightning Squad struggled with an ever-growing swarm of
Black Moon ships zooming into the city.  Luckily, the Black Moon forces
tended to arrive in disorganized fragments, and their attacks were not
coordinated.

     Daley frowned slightly.  "They're fighting as if they have no
central command."

     "This displeases you?"  Celia asked, surprised.

     "This doesn't match the reports we picked up over subspace radio
on our way here.  They sounded highly organized and disciplined, if not
the best long-range planners.  I'm afraid this may be intended to lure us into
a false sense of security."

     Celia shook her head.  "They haven't got the resources to waste
this many ships.  And if they do get their act together, then even our ace
in the hole might not save us."

     "We may not need it if they continue to fight this stupidly."

     "It's always best to be prepared." 

**************

     There was a flash of light, and Sylvie appeared, clutching an
angry Sailor Nemesis.  Uriel gritted his teeth and prayed for any help
that anyone listening might be able to give him.  A second later, Sylvie
teleported back to him, Tsubasa, and Minki.  "So, you think you can beat
me if you get me alone!  I'll show you!"  Sailor Nemesis shouted.

     Uriel stepped forward, praying with half his mind and talking with
the other.  "Gabrielle!  Wiseman has tricked you!  You've got to reject
him!"

     "You betrayed me!  You left me to worship Mercury and I almost
DIED!"

     "We all got knocked out fighting the purple haired woman!"  Uriel
shouted back.  He stepped forward again.  "Wiseman killed Demand!  You
can't trust him!"

     "No!"  She stepped forward as well, then glanced up at the battle
raging overhead.  "Our glorious forces will destroy your Juraiian allies!"

     Uriel looked up.  That was a Juraiian fleet?  He did see a few
tree ships, but most of the ships didn't look Juraiian.  And what were
Juraiian forces doing...the embassy.  They must have come to rescue the
Crown Prince.  "It looks like they're not doing too well."

     She raised her naginata, pointing the blade at Minki.  "This evil
sorceress is twisting your mind!  I'll get rid of her!"  She spun the
naginata about, and lightning began to crackle round its tip.  The
trailing bolt grew larger and larger.

     Sylvie panicked and opened fire with an energy beam on Nemesis and
a proper brawl began.

***************

     Captain William Hibiki moved down Jupiter Way, leading his tank
squadron.  The armed forces had finally been able to move enough forces
into place to begin retaking the city, and he was part of that assault,
spearheading one of the thrusts down the five major avenues that lead into
the heart of the city.  He could see the glow of the forcefield around the
palace off in the distance; it was starting to waver a little.  The fact
that five human beings could generate a forcefield that strong was amazing
to him, even living on a planet with such powerful magic.  Four humans, in
fact, now that he thought about it.  

     He himself had a knack for travel magic and some affinity for
earth magic, both of which had stood him in good stead; he knew
instinctively the best path to lead his forces on to get where they were
going.  All of the task forces were closing in on the site were most of
the Black Moon ground forces were concentrated, the Juraiian embassy.  

     A secondary glow surrounded it, making it easy to spot as well,
though with his travel magic, he could have found the best route to the
Juraiian embassy while standing on another planet.  Here in Crystal Tokyo,
it was amazingly easy.  Indeed, he could have easily teleported directly
to it, but that would have left the rest of his forces behind.

     To his surprise, the glow flickered out for five seconds, then
clicked back in.  Their generator must be giving out, he thought.

***************

     Nene frowned.  "The power converter is about to burn out.  We're
going to lose the shield completely in about five minutes."

     Ryu frowned as well, staring at the black rune and circuitry laden
box.  "And the relief forces won't show up for at least fifteen to twenty
minutes."

     "Right."

     "Only one thing to do, then."

     "Retreat into the fortified bunker?"

     Ryu shook his head.  "The bunker won't hold off a real army.  And
it's not big enough.  We have quite a squadron of powerful people here.
Everyone without powers will retreat into the bunker with the converter,
which should last longer if the power level is dropped to just that needed
to shield the bunker.  The rest of us..."  He cracked his knuckles.  "Will
break out and hook up with one of the relief forces.  It's me and you that
they want, anyway."

     "That sounds like one of your mom's plans."

     He grinned.  "Yeah."

     She shook her head.  "You're incorrigible."

     "Yep."

*************


     Droido Romance Novel was bored out of her mind, as she had already
read herself about 2000 times.  Being on scout duty was boring as well,
since all she was doing was watching the Dune Shield shimmer.  Suddenly,
the shield dropped; that got her attention.

     She sprang to her feet, ready to send the signal to the rest of
the beseiging forces.  A column of forces lead by a flying woman in a pink
and purple hardsuit, a giant white robot, and a man with spikey brown hair
charged out at high speed.  

     She offered a quick prayer to Georgette Heyer, then sent the
signal and prepared to battle.  I, who am about to die, salute me, she
thought, as a crazed woman with a spatula closed in on her.

***************

     The tide of battle had turned as the three largest Black Moon task
forces had arrived.  The lack of orders from Prince Demand ceased to be a
problem when Tourmaline arrived.  She was one of the three admirals, along
with her brother Magnesite (who was still posted out in the orbit of
Jupiter), and Quartz, who was simply in charge of logistics.  She quickly
enforced order, and soon the vastly superior numbers of the Black Moon
forces came into play, driving back the Juraiian fleet towards the bay. 

     It fell back, now forming a crescent moon out over the ocean at a
low altitude.  She split her forces to attack the two horns, not being
dumb enough to rush right up the middle.  Everything was going quite well.
Only one thing bothered her; the reported Fungi from Yuggoth forces had
simply vanished.  

     Her worries were answered when Crystal Tokyo Bay suddenly boiled
and a hundred twisted and gnarled living ships erupted up out of the bay,
engulfing an equal number of her ships and destroying them, although they
lost fifteen of their own ships in the process, blown apart by weapons or
crystal drive explosions.

     At the same time, a ground battery which had been moved into place
along the harbor opened fire, nailing several ships.  Her fleet began to
panic and retreat towards the city, although much of it was still intact.
And still there was no word from Prince Demand.  Life was not looking
good.  

***************

     Things were not going well for Uriel and company.  Minki had been
knocked out, Tsubasa was hanging upside down from an awning with his own
giant spatula wrapped around his head, and Sylvie was burned, battered,
and bruised.  Only Uriel was unhurt, as she had deliberately avoided
attacking him.  

     He kept shouting at her, trying to convince her she had been
fooled, but he wasn't getting through to her.  The two women were dueling
directly with power now, a beam of black from the naginata jousting with a
pure white beam from Sylvie's hands.  Slowly, the black was overcoming the
white, and sweat was running down Sylvie's brow.  

     He had to do something, but he had no idea what he could do.  He
had no powers anymore.  Only words could be his weapons, unless...

     Sylvie teleported away before she could lose, but then collapsed,
drained, near him.  "I can't believe she's so...powerful...My sister Ryoko
is stronger than that when she has her power gems, but...Maybe I should
have been getting more sleep the last few days or not blow up those
ships..."

     Nemesis closed in.  "Now I will reclaim the one that Serenity
stole from me and I will destroy you, demon, for interfering!"

     "She's not a demon!"

     "You're just under her spell."  The naginata was raised to chest
level.  "THUNDER CLAP!"  Lightning erupted from it.

     There was only one thing to do.  He threw himself in the path of
the blast, praying he could take it better than her.  "Gabrielle, PLEASE
STOP!" he shouted, and then the electricity ran through him. 

     It was pure agony, his muscles spasming and locking alternately;
he could smell his flesh crisping.  And then it was over.  He collapsed,
not sure if he would live or die.

     And Nemesis scream.  "NO!!!! URIEL!!!!"

     In an instant, she was by him, kneeling and crying.  "No, you have
to live!  I just wanted to get you back, but you all left me behind
and...and..."  He could feel her tears splashing on his face.

     Weakly he said, "Do you really think...I would ever leave you
behind?"

     "No...no...please, you've got to live."

     There was a flutter of wings, and a being forged of light and
shadow appeared, his hands outstretched, hovering over them.  {IT IS TOO
LATE FOR THAT.  THE ONLY ONE WHO COULD SAVE HIS LIFE HAS
BEEN LAID LOW BY YOUR POWER.}

     "Take me instead!" she shouted.  "He...he...I didn't mean to kill
him!"

     {I AM NOT ALLOWED TO MAKE SUCH BARGAINS.  I DO NOT DECIDE WHO
LIVES AND WHO DIES, I MERELY CARRY THEM TO THEIR FINAL DESTINATION.} 
His voice was sad.  {I HAVE SEEN YOUR STORY A MILLION TIMES.  DO NOT KILL
YOURSELF.  IT WOULD BE OF NO AVAIL AND MERELY WOULD STRIP YOU OF
YOUR ABILITY TO ONE DAY BE REUNITED WITH HIM.}

     "There has to be something!"  With all the power she could feel
surging inside her, there had to be something.  For a moment, she
entertained the idea of simply unleashing it and driving the being away,
protecting his soul from being taken.

     {THAT WOULD ONLY DELIVER HIM OVER TO THE DEMONS, CHILD,} he said.
{THEY COULD NOT KEEP HIM FOR LONG...BUT IT WOULD BE UNPLEASANT.  AND
IT WOULD NOT SAVE HIS LIFE.  WOULD YOU DAMN HIM TO BE A WANDERING
SOUL, UNABLE TO REST?}

     Sylvie looked up at him.  "I remember you."

     Nemesis looked over at her.  "You've met the Angel of Death?"

     "I died.  He came for me.  I couldn't believe it.  I can't
remember any of what happened after that until I woke up in Mama's
laboratory."  She seemed remarkably calm, probably because the events had
happened a thousand years ago.  Given enough time, almost anything can
seem normal.

     "You died and came back?  How?  HOW?"  Nemesis demanded.

     {THE RULES ARE DIFFERENT FOR BOOMERS THAN HUMANS, FOR THE
BOOMERS HAD NO PART IN THEIR OWN FALL FROM GRACE.  MOST BOOMERS
HAD NO SOUL, AND THE SINS THEY COMMITTED WERE ACCOUNTED TO THOSE
WHO SENT THEM FORTH TO DESTROY.  AND FOR THOSE WHOSE OWNERS AND
FRIENDS GAVE THEM SOULS...A BOOMER IS MORE EASILY REVIVED THAN A
HUMAN.  PLUS...WASYUU CHEATED."

     Sylvie laughed faintly.  "Mom is like that."

     Uriel leaned up, kissed Nemesis, and moaned.  "I love you,
Gabrielle."

     "I love you too," she said, then kissed him.  "There has to be
something I can do!"

     {I AM THE ANGEL OF DEATH. PREVENTING DEATH IS NOT ONE OF MY
POWERS.}

     "Then get the Angel of LIFE or something!"  Nemesis shouted.

     {THE CHAMPION OF LIFE OF THIS WORLD WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO ARRIVE
IN TIME,} he said.  {HIS TIME IS...AAH.}

     "Mrr?"  Sylvie said.

     {I WONDER IF SERENITY COULD TELL...A DEFENDER FOR EVERY WORLD,
AND SOMETIMES MORE.  DEMAND HAS FALLEN, AND THE TIME HAS COME FOR
NEMESIS TO HAVE A NEW CHAMPION.  SOMETIMES THE CHAMPION FALLS INTO
DARKNESS, BUT NOT EVERY SUCH JOURNEY ENDS THERE.}  He pointed at Nemesis. 
{YOU CAN SAVE HIM, BUT YOU MUST GIVE UP THE POWER YOU CURRENTLY
POSSESS TO SAVE HIM. YOU CANNOT HEAL WITH DARKNESS, ONLY WITH LIGHT. 
TAKE UP YOUR RIGHTFUL ROLE, AND YOU CAN SAVE HIM, THOUGH THE COST
WILL BE HIGH.}

     "I'll pay any cost!  I don't care if I never have any powers ever
again if it will save Uriel's life!  Just tell me what to do."

     {I MUST INFORM YOU OF THE BURDEN YOU WILL BE TAKING UP.  THE
STRUGGLE TO BRING LIGHT TO YOUR WORLD, TO NEMESIS WILL BE LONG AND
HARD.  IT WILL CONSUME YOUR ENTIRE LIFE, UNTIL YOU EITHER SUCCEED, FAIL
OR DIE.  YOU MAY QUITE WELL DIE HORRIBLY, AND YOUR LIFE WILL NOT BE
YOUR OWN.  THE LIGHT MAKES HEAVY DEMANDS OF ITS CHAMPIONS, AND
OFTEN THE ONLY REWARD IS THE POWER YOU WIELD AND THE JOY OF
KNOWING YOU HAVE DONE RIGHT.  YOU WILL BE RICHLY REWARDED IN
HEAVEN, BUT THAT IS OFTEN LITTLE COMFORT WHEN YOU
SUFFER ON EARTH.  YOU MUST HEAL YOUR WORLD, AND THAT IS THE HARDEST
TASK ANYONE CAN BE SET TO.}

     "I'll do it!"  She could feel Uriel getting weaker.  She
remembered Serenity now, how Serenity had sacrificed herself for her, and
she wondered if she could handle that...if she could do something like
that.  For that was the sort of thing which would be expected of her.
"I...don't know if I'm strong enough, or good enough or...but I'll try
anything to save Uriel."

     {NO ONE IS STRONG ENOUGH OR GOOD ENOUGH FOR EVERY TASK.  ALL
WE ASK IS THAT YOU DO YOUR BEST WITH THE DUTIES YOU HAVE TAKEN UP.  IT
IS BETTER TO FAIL IN A GOOD CAUSE THAN TO SUCCEED IN AN ILL ONE.}  He
reached out a hand and a horn formed in the air between them.  {THAT IS YOUR
TALISMAN, GABRIELLE, BRINGER OF GLAD TIDINGS.  TAKE IT AND BECOME
YOUR TRUE SELF.}

     For a moment, she hesitated, afraid.  It was hers, she knew it as
she knew her own self.  And yet, the power it bore was unlike any power 
she had ever wielded.  The power within her throbbed with fear of what the
horn held.  As she reached for the horn, the Dark Power sought to stop her
arm, but she shoved it aside.

     What followed was the greatest agony of her life.  Soft fingers
curled round hard metal, lifted metal to lips, and then she blew upon the
horn.  A single note cut through the sounds of battle above and in the
distance, cut through her like a knife.  She could feel her flesh boiling
away, her skin being peeled off, her brain pierced by a dozen blades of
Silver Power.  It was the agony of picking off a scab multiplied a million
times.

     Within her, Dark Power gibbered and howled, seizing her vocal
cords and forcing her to spasm as it was burned out of her.  Light and
dark vortexed around her, lifting her upwards as she detransformed, her
Sailor uniform dissolving into black threads which turned to ash one by
one.  Light erupted from her forehead, forming itself into a full moon
sign.  Her shoulder blades pulsed and great wings erupted from them, white
and feathery, then folded around her, dissolving away into a new uniform,
a high collared dress with a knee-length skirt, white in color and fringed
with yellow.  Light ran through her hair, which while still brown was now
dotted with golden sparkles.  

     The last of the darkness burned out of her, and for the first time
she faced the world free of the dark chains she had forged for herself.
She gave a great shout for joy, then knelt by Uriel, still holding her
horn.  She kissed him and released the power she felt within herself.  

     It flowed through him, closing his wounds, healing his burns, and
calling back his soul from the precipice into which it was about to fall.
He sat up, feeling more alive than he had felt in a long time, since the
wonder of childhood had faded, as it did early on Nemesis.  "Thank you."
He turned to the Angel, but it was gone.  "He's gone."

     Sylvie sat up.  "There's probably other people to attend to.
Although they likely won't thank him."

***************

     With Nemesis vanished and Commander Tiger Eye Agate crushed flat
by the giant white robot in the first few seconds, the Black Moon forces
around the Juraiian embassy milled about mindlessly in a giant floating
brawl, unable to take advantage of their superior numbers, attacking like
kung fu movie thugs.

     A dark-skinned streak blurred through the horde, stealing weapons.
Those who tried to take command suddenly found the image of a blonde
haired woman before them seconds before they passed out.  Three martial
artists tore through the horde, even if one of them usually ran away first
before he actually attacked.  Another blonde fought with the power of her
mind, back to back with a Juraiian lord, who fought with the power of a
Juraiian Key.  A pink and purple hardsuited woman and her spikey haired
husband flew over the battle, attacking anything that could fly.  Uranus
and Neptune could be seen cutting huge swathes through the droids and
their human masters.  

     Then the tanks arrived.  The forces of the Black Moon gave a great
cry and shattered, fleeing in all directions; the hunt was on.

**************

     The field around the Palace suddenly collapsed, giving new heart
to the hard pressed Black Moon forces.  Still, Tourmaline was rapidly
coming to the conclusion that she should withdraw her forces...the battle
on the ground was lost, Demand was missing, and things could only get
worse.

     The confirmation of this came when a massive beam of four
intertwined cords of energy--blue, red, green, and orange--erupted from
the vicinity of the palace and began to sweep through the fleet, smashing
ship after ship.  That was enough for her.

     "All ships retreat to the orbit of Jupiter.  Withdraw NOW!"

     If they could reunite with Magnesite, they could probably make it
out of the system and jump to safety.  There was no real hope of victory,
not now.  Indeed, she was starting to suspect this had been a fool's quest
from the beginning.  Demand had been overconfident, expecting he could
capture Endymion and Serenity would jump into his arms.  She knew better.
The conquest would be a long, grinding task, but they would have time
enough to prepare on Nemesis where time flowed faster.  One day, they
would come back and finish the job.  Patience, that was the key.  Next
time, they would do it RIGHT.

***************

     Battered and bruised, Pluto appeared before Serenity in a flash.
"I have bad news, my queen."

     Serenity was at her side in an instant.  "What's happened to you?
Do you want me to heal you?  You...who did this?"

     "The Angel of Vengeance,"  Pluto managed to say, then fell to her
knees.  "Yes, please heal me."

     Serenity no longer needed the help of the Silver Crystal or other
tools for something as simple as this.  The touch of her hand and a spoken
word were enough to send cleansing, soothing energies through Pluto,
wiping away her injuries.  "The what?"

     "You know her as Arcadia.  Wiseman has convinced her to obliterate
Nemesis with the power of the Silver Crystal inside her."

     Serenity's eyes widened.  "But...how does she have it?  Shouldn't
my daughter have it with her in the past right now?"

     "The crystal of OUR future.  Now I understand everything.  She is
your future descendant.  One day far in the future, the Crystal will hide
itself away until it is needed.  She is the bearer of the Crystal in her
lifetime.  That is why the Black Moon forces of the future hunted her, and
how she was able to use the Time Key to come to the past."  Pluto stood
back up.  "Thank you, Serenity."

     "She is?  Then why did she become Sailor Uranus instead of Sailor
Moon?"

     "Like you and all the Serenities, she is the focal point of the
power wielded by the Sailor Senshi.  You have the power to create new
Senshi as Serenity I created the Senshi, and also the power to take up
whatever aspect of that power you please.  If you wanted to take on the
Mercury powers or Neptune, or whatever, you could.  Sailor Moon could have
as easily been Sailor Demos or Sailor Sun or whatever, depending on what
Luna told you and what your own subconscious prompted you to believe.  If
she had stayed in her own time, her powers of the line of Serenity would
have laid latent, and she would simply have been Sailor Uranus."

     Serenity nodded.  "So now she has been corrupted by Wiseman."  She
sighed.  "I can understand why she was so mad.  When I remembered what
Beryl did to the Moon Kingdom...But I must stop her."

     "It will be incredibly dangerous.  You are stronger in raw power
than her, but she possesses the crystal.  If she thinks of it, she could
strip us all of our power."

     "I cannot let her massacre the people of Nemesis.  They deserve
better than to die because I was unable to find a way to make peace with
them.  Gather as many of the Senshi as can function.  I will go and say
goodbye to Endymion."  She turned and departed.

     Pluto smiled.  For a moment, she remembered a day, over a thousand
years earlier, when she had asked Usagi if she wanted to go to the Marine
Chapel to save Uranus and Neptune, and Usagi had gone without even being
able to transform, after Uranus and Neptune had stolen her transformation
brooch.  Some things never changed...and that was sometimes a very good
thing.

****************

     It had taken some doing for Serenity to assemble her expeditionary
force.  The Inners were resting, too exhausted for the trip, and Endymion
was still healing.  The Junior Pluto had stayed behind to handle some
business.  Still, she had the Elder Pluto, Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn
with her, and four new allies, the Senshi of Nemesis and her three
friends, who had insisted on coming with her.  Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn
had told the trio they were fools, but Pluto had agreed they should come;
she knew something, Serenity was sure.  She trusted Pluto's judgement in
most things.

     She herself had agreed to it because she knew it would not come
down to a fight, or at least not really be decided by the battle.  You did
not need magic to fight for someone's soul.  Nor did she fear Wiseman; he
had been beaten by two desperate children, and she was grown into the full
power of her adulthood, stronger than he had ever been.  

     They all joined hands, interlacing Nemesis's three friends between
Senshi.  It would be a difficult jump, but with Nemesis to guide them,
they could do it.  "SAILOR TELEPORT!"  The ground deformed beneath them
and a multicolored bolt leaped into the heavens and streaked across the
galaxy faster than any eye could follow.

****************

Wasyuu's lab, Subspace, Juraiian Year 23224  (3060 AD, 3811 Years after
the founding of Rome, SY 68, Federal Year -926)

     Wasyuu and Anri triple-checked the equipment, while Ryoko and
Linna played House Fighter (a game which involved battles between heavily
armed dwellings) on one of Wasyuu's game systems.  "Have you found 'em
yet?"  Ryoko asked, doing a combo that caused a tree to fall during a
storm and break a hole in the roof of Linna's duplex.

     "Hmm.  On a scale of 1 to 1000, where 1 is an army of demons
carrying us all off to Hell, and 1000 is losing a one Peso coin, this is
about a 5."

     Linna said, "..."

     Anri said, "Well, it's only that bad if they do something to alter
history."

     Wasyuu simply stared at her.

     "I mean, Kiyone wouldn't let them change anything, right?"

     Now everyone simply stared at her.

     "I mean...Linna can take us straight to heaven when we die,
right?"

     "So where are they?"  Linna asked.

     "You learned about the Big Bang in school, right?"  Wasyuu asked.

     "Well, maybe it actually happened because they went there,"  Anri
said.

     Wasyuu blinked.  "Hmmm...that makes a certain amount of sense."

     Linna shook her head.  "I went and checked.  That's not what
happened."

     They all stared at her.

     "Hey, I wanted to know what really happened, so I wouldn't go
around spreading heresy accidentally, or something.  Anyway, I don't think
them being at the beginning of time is a good thing."

     "Well, I'll just reconfigure my time machine so we can go fetch
them before something horrible happens."

     "Why does it need to be reconfigured?"  Ryoko asked.  

     "I had set it so it was impossible to travel back in time before I
invented it, so I wouldn't accidentally destroy myself.  You can LOOK back
in time, just not travel to a point before it was invented."

     Anri said, "Let's get to work."
  
****************

Nemesis, Low Nemesis Orbit, Nemesis Year 305, (SY 68, 3060 AD, 3811 Years
after the founding of Rome, Juraiian Year 23224, Federal Year -926)

     "Arcadia, you can't just kill them all,"  Serenity pleaded.  They
had arrived and faced off with the Angel of Vengeance and Wiseman.  Things
weren't going so well.

     "THEY WILL BE SHOWN THE MERCY THEY HAVE GIVEN," Vengeance said.  

     "Don't listen to her!"  Wiseman said.  "She lied to you, pretended
to be someone else in order to get close to you!"

     Serenity blinked, then realized what he meant.  "I thought you
needed a friend, not a queen."

     "YOU LIED TO ME!"

     Serenity winced.  "Would you have listened to Queen Serenity
better than you did to Usagi?  I never listened to adults when I was
young."

     "YOU JUST WANTED TO USE ME!  YOU LET YOUR OWN PEOPLE BE
SLAUGHTERED BY THE BLACK MOON!"

     "She did her best to defend them!"  Uranus shouted.  "We all did!"

     "YOU KNEW THEY WOULD COME BACK!  YOU KNEW THEY WOULD
DEVASTATE THE CITY!"

     "You can't MURDER people for crimes they haven't committed yet!"
Serenity fired back.  "I hoped I could change things!  You can't make
people your friends by punishing them!  It takes love and compassion to
end a feud, not revenge and punishment!"

     "NOTHING WILL STOP THE BLACK MOON BUT DEATH,"  Vengeance said.
"ONLY DEATH CAN END THE PAIN THEY HAVE CAUSED."  

     "You'll kill the guilty and the innocent alike!"

     "IF THEY WERE REALLY INNOCENT, THEY WOULDN'T LIVE ON THE BLACK
MOON!"

     Nemesis shook her head and drew a circle in the air with her
finger.  A vision appeared, of a small city of basalt and onyx, homes
built of dark crystal and volcanic rock.  Four children ran about, playing
tag among the jagged spires.  "You're it!" one of them, a young black
haired boy, shouted as he touched the shoulder of a brown haired girl, who
pouted, then ran after a blonde boy and his sister, who looked much like
him.  The four figures were clearly recognizable as younger versions of
Nemesis and her three friends.  The four children continued to play, and
other children could be seen playing with a scruffy looking dog in the
distance.  "Even on a world this dismal, we sometimes found time to play
and have fun," she said quietly.  "Most of whom were left behind when the
fleet left were the children and the elderly."  

     Raphaelle nodded.  "They haven't done anything wrong."

     Vengeance hesitated.  "BUT...IF I DO NOTHING, THEY WILL GO ON TO
DO MORE EVIL!"

     "Kill them!"  Wiseman urged.  "They'll go on to kill your family
and everyone you care about if they don't die now!"

     "Don't listen to him, Arcadia!"  Serenity exclaimed.  "He just
wants to make you a murderer like him!  No one has the right to condemn an
entire world to death!"

     "I HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!  I HAVE TO STOP IT!  STOP THE EVIL BEFORE
IT HAPPENS!"  Energy began to swirl around her, a vortex of garnet energy.
Pluto's staff pulsed to the beat of the waves of energy.

     "She's going to travel though time!"  Pluto announced.

     "Arcadia, stop!"  Serenity begged.

     Then the vortex exploded.  Uranus and Neptune flung themselves
between Serenity and the vortex, knocking themselves out, but shielding
her.  And then Vengeance and Wiseman were gone.
     
****************

Wasyuu's lab, Subspace, Juraiian Year 23224  (3060 AD, 3811 Years after
the founding of Rome, SY 68, Federal Year -926)

     Wasyuu stepped back.  "Excellent.  Now, let's just set it to..."

     A loud alarm began to sound.  Ryoko said, "Lemme guess, it's gonna
explode."

     "No, it's picking up a massive distortion,"  Anri said.
"Stretching from the present to...the beginning of time.  And now there's
a wave moving forward, altering history."

     "The Ministry of Destiny is going to be pissed,"  Linna said,
leaping to her feet.  "We'd better get going!"

     "Wait...if we're going to the beginning of time...isn't all of
space and time crumpled up into a tiny little dot?"  Ryoko asked.

     "We'll be in the space the universe expands into,"  Linna said.
"Be prepared to...freak out."

     "Well, that's a useful warning,"  Ryoko said sarcastically.  

*****************

Beyond Time and Space

     Vengeance and Wiseman floated in the great void, a swirling cloud
of mist, and gazed upon the seed which would become the entire universe
they had come from.  The Wiseman was scared; he could not feel his master
anywhere, and his own power was seeping away bit by bit.  They could not
stay long.  "There it is.  The world which has only brought you pain.
Destroy it, and you destroy all pain.  No one can suffer if they do not
exist.  The Black Moon will be obliterated as if it had never been,
because it will never have been."

     "I don't think so,"  a voice said from the mist.  Four women
emerged, forming a wall in front of the seed.  Two were clad as Knights of
Jurai, the other two wore the uniforms which they had worn in their mortal
lives, even though it made them look like they were about to go swimming
rather than do battle.  "Destroying the entire universe is a violation of
the Galaxy Municipal Code, Article 6547, Subsection B."  Mihoshi leveled
a laser at Wiseman.  "You have the right to remain silent.  You have the
right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one..."

     Wiseman blinked; who were these people?  Two of them held the
stench of the Enemy, but the two knights of Jurai...at the beginning of
time?  "Destroy them!  They would deny you your vengeance!"

     Vengeance raised her scythe high...and then it was gone.  Mihoshi
had it, having blurred across the intervening space in an instant.
"Assaulting an officer of the law is a violation of..."  Mihoshi began.

     "We can read her her rights later!"  Kiyone said.  "Umm...Dirty
Pair, you take out the woman, we'll handle the man."

     "You'll handle no one!"  Wiseman fired off a blast of Dark Power,
then sagged, weakened.  It was enough to level the two Knights, but the
two servants of his Enemy shrugged it off.  He was confused...one simple
blast shouldn't have weakened him, but he couldn't find any Dark Power to
replenish himself.

     Then Vengeance charged the Dirty Pair and the battle was truly
joined.

***************

     "I cannot give chase, my queen,"  Pluto said.  "She has passed
into the distant past before I was...AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!"  She spasmed
and howled as if she had become an angry wolf.  And then tiny flames raced
across her, burning her away to nothing.

     Saturn gulped.  "What the..."

     "She has been erased,"  Serenity whispered.  "I fear we may be
next."

***************

Beyond Time and Space

     Kei and Yuri gave ground, hard pressed by the assault, unable to
stop her, although her lack of her scythe hampered her.  Raw energies
surged between the two combatants as they struggled with pure willpower to
overcome the other.  She had the edge; she was utterly obsessed and they
didn't know how to get through to her, while they couldn't quite manage
that level of insanity.

     Then Wiseman picked up her scythe.  It dissolved away, and he
looked renewed.  "Now, I shall do the work myself."  He strode towards the
universe waiting to be born.

     At that moment, the air shimmered in a circle, and Wasyuu
appeared, ringed by Ryoko, Anri, and Linna.  "Game's over, Wiseman," she
said.  "Ryoko, take out the trash."

     Ryoko laughed and pointed a finger at Wiseman.  "Surrender now."

     "YOU WILL NOT STOP ME!"  He unleashed a massive vortex of black,
swirling energies that erupted through the mists, burning them away in an
instant, erupting towards Wasyuu and her squad.

     For a moment, the Dirty Pair were distracted by the sight, and
flung some of their own power to stop the attack.  Unfortunately, this
left them open, and Vengeance smote them down in that instant.

     Wasyuu sighed.  "Been there, done that.  Ryoko-chan, if you will?"

     "Bang," she said, and a searing red beam stabbed from her finger,
cutting Wiseman in half.  He screamed and evaporated, his now empty robes
settling to the 'ground'.  Ryoko stared at her finger.  "That was easy."

     Anri pointed to Vengeance.  "She won't be."

     "A wraith!"  Wasyuu said, cursing.  "He's been snapped back
through time to his farfigchen fetters!  I would have brought a ghost trap
if I'd known..."

     Vengeance turned to face the foursome.  "I WILL NOT BE STOPPED!"

     Wasyuu stepped forward, but Anri put a hand on her shoulder,
"Mother, if she really has enough power to destroy the universe..."

     "I know what I'm doing,"  Wasyuu said.  "Let me guess.  Someone
you loved died."

     "I DO NOT DO THIS FOR HIM ALONE, BUT FOR ALL THOSE WHO HAVE
SUFFERED AT THE HAND OF THE BLACK MOON."

     "Bullshit,"  Wasyuu said.  "You're doing this because you got
hurt.  No one destroys all of reality for the benefit of other people."

     Vengeance hesitated.  "THE WORLD IS A CESSPOOL OF PAIN AND EVIL.
DARKNESS OUTWEIGHS LIGHT.  HOPE ALWAYS DWINDLES AND IS BETRAYED. 
EV..."

     "Bullshit,"  Wasyuu said again.  "You got hurt, and now you're
taking it out on the universe instead of the people who hurt you."

     Vengeance hesitated longer.  "I COULD NOT...THERE WERE
CHILDREN..."

     "This is the entire universe!  Destroy it and you destroy ALL the
children!"  Wasyuu said, stepping closer to Vengeance.  "You'll destroy
all evil, but you'll also destroy all good!"

     "SOMETIMES A PRICE MUST BE..."

     "Ain't none of these people ASKED to pay that price!  What gives
you the right?"

     Vengeance stared at Wasyuu, paralyzed for a moment, then spoke
again.  "I JUST...MUST EVIL GO UNPUNISHED?  EVERY TIME I HAVE TRIED TO
STRIKE AGAINST THEM, I HAVE BEEN DENIED THE RIGHT TO DO JUSTICE TO
THEM!!!"

     Wasyuu's eyes narrowed.  "You don't want justice.  You want to get
even.  To hurt them like they hurt you."

     "NO...I..."

     "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind,"  Linna said.  

     Wasyuu made shooshing gestures at her.  "Child, what did they do
to you?"

     "THEY KILLED MY BOYFRIEND AND HUNTED ME ACROSS THE GALAXY,
THEN THEY ATTACKED MY NEW FRIENDS AND...THEY TRIED TO DESTROY
CRYSTAL TOKYO.  AND EVENTUALLY, THEY CONQUERED THE EARTH AND
RAVAGED IT."

     "Would destroying the universe bring all those people back to
life?"

     "YE...NO."

     Wasyuu's voice was softer now.  "Has your life really been nothing
but pain?"

     Vengeance choked up for a moment as she began to speak.  "I USED
TO BE SO NAIVE...TO THINK THE WORLD WAS A BEAUTIFUL PLACE...THAT IF YOU
WERE GOOD TO IT...AND THEN I LOST EVERYONE I LOVED AND THEY KILLED
EVERYONE WHO TRIED TO HELP ME AND..."  She began to cry.  "I STILL DON'T
EVEN KNOW WHY!"

     Wasyuu stepped within arm's reach of Vengeance; her three friends
tensed.  She suddenly assumed her adult form, and laid a hand on
Vengeance's shoulder.  "I don't know why my homeworld was destroyed,
either."

     Vengeance stared at Wasyuu.  "YOUR HOMEWORLD...was destroyed?"
Her voice sagged to a more normal register.  "What did you do?"

     "Nothing.  I was imprisoned for five thousand years by a man I had
trusted, my student, Kagato, and while I was trapped, something destroyed
my homeworld.  I, Ryoko, and Ryoko's children are the last Bryllians, and
I am the last of my race to set foot upon my homeworld.  Nothing is left
of it but dust.  The last inhabitant of my world died while Earthlings
were still getting the knack of this 'Iron' thing."

     "Who did it?"  Vengeance was staring at Wasyuu in shock, tears
still running down her face.  "What did you do to them?"

     "Nothing.  I don't even know who did it or how it was done.  The
Things From Beyond...maybe.  Bryllia had powerful allies, but powerful
enemies as well.  I checked every record of every world, but all I learned
was that one night all communications ceased, and a day later, all anyone
could find around Bryllia's sun was dust.  All eleven worlds had been
destroyed."  Wasyuu's voice shook, and now she began to cry.  "I could not
even avenge them."

     Anri began to cry as well.  "Mother..."

     Ryoko watched, aghast.  "I thought...I never realized she..."

     "I lost my only son because his family thought I was low class;
they didn't like Bryllians or scientists, or anyone without a pedigree
five hundred generations long.  And then, before he could even grow to
adulthood, he died in a shuttle 'accident'."  She shook now, resting her
head on Vengeance's shoulder, and they awkwardly hugged each other.  "I've
always thought about making a son, but he would only remind me of Annadil,
my 'beloved gift'.  And Angacil...he died in the accident too."

     "That's horrible!"

     "So when they died...I went to the system where Angacil's parents
lived, and I tried to make their star go nova."

     Silence settled over everything.

     "I could live with them taking him away...but taking him away to
die...I wanted to die.  I wanted them to die.  I wanted everything to die,
because the only people I was living for were dead.  I lost everyone I
cared about in that accident."

     Ryoko stared, and a tear ran down her cheek.  "Mom..."

     "The device to make the star go nova didn't work.  All it did was
create a solar flare that nearly killed me, and destroyed 90% of my
subspace laboratory.  When I saw the poor creatures in my labs die...I
realized what I was doing.  Vengeance never hurts only the people who hurt
you.  You hurt yourself, and you inevitably hurt innocents."

     "I tried to avenge the death of my friend Sylvie and my other
boomer friends, and as a result, I nearly killed one of my best friends
and almost got everyone in Mega-Tokyo killed,"  Anri said quietly,
stepping closer.  "And I died pointlessly.  I'd still be dead if Mother
hadn't brought me back to life."

     "I just...I have to do something...If the Black Moon isn't
stopped, they'll hurt more people.  They'll kill more people, they..."

     "My name is Wasyuu.  Wasyuu Hakubi.  What's yours?"

     "My name is V...My name is Arcadia.  Arcadia N'Goya.  I'm Sailor
Uranus."  She visibly sagged, and her form began to flicker.

     Wasyuu looked her up and down.  "Of the line of Serenity."

     "What?"  Her eyes widened.

     "You've got the Silver Crystal within you.  Only one of the blood
of Serenity can carry it within them.  As long as it exists, the power of
Serenity will survive.  It's not a power for vengeance, it's a power for
healing."  She stared seriously at Arcadia.  "Those who bear the power of
Serenity are meant to be leaders and healers, not dealers of vengeance.
If you want to stop the Black Moon, then you need to heal them, not
obliterate them.  Even if the adults are damned, the children can be
saved."  She hesitated.  "As I well know."

     Ryoko stepped closer, as did Anri.  "Mother..." they both said.

     Linna came forward now, dodging those two and coming to the other
side of Wasyuu.  "She's right.  She..."  She heard the Dirty Pair groan.
I'd best make sure they don't start anything.  "Listen to her."  She
quickly set about making sure the Dirty Pair and the Unlucky Pair were
okay.  

     "That's why I didn't rip off Ryoko's head for making off with the
man I loved,"  Wasyuu said quietly.  Ryoko stared.  "Vengeance
accomplishes nothing.  Best to find ways to heal the damage instead."

     "I'm sorry, Mom,"  Ryoko whispered.  "I never knew...I always
thought you were just joking around with him and..."  She stared at the
ground.

     "Do you really think I could...that I'm..."  Arcadia could hardly
believe it.  I'm of the line of Serenity?  That I bear the Silver Crystal?
"Does this mean...I'm supposed to rule the Earth or something in my time?"

     "To heal it, I'm sure,"  Wasyuu said.  "There's always room for
improvement, and I know your time...has a lot of room."

     Arcadia laughed.  "You've seen it?"

     "I got curious one day and did a little spying,"  Wasyuu said.
"It gets worse, but it gets better too.  What Serenity did for the Earth,
her heirs will do for the Galaxy.  The Stingray Plan and all that...but
it's best not to know too much about the future."  She smiled at Arcadia.
"Ready to go back and help us clean up the mess?"

     Arcadia finished flickering, settling down as Sailor Uranus.
"Yes.  Thank you, Wasyuu.  I...I hope I can talk to you again before I
have to go back to my own time."

     Linna finished reviving the four Guardians of Karma.  "You may
have a long time to talk...I don't see Wasyuu's time machine anywhere."

     "..."

     "I told you reversing the polarity of the
infraultraspectro-meteroric polarity inverter was a bad idea, Mom,"  Anri
said with a faint hint of irritation in her voice.

     Wasyuu turned to Arcadia.  "You brought yourself here.  You can
take us home."

     "I can?"

     "Summon the gate of Time."

     "But that's Pluto's power!"

     "Serenity gave Pluto that power.   There's no Pluto using it right
now, so..."

     Arcadia pointed and concentrated.  Upon her brow, the sign of
Serenity, the yellow crescent moon, gleamed brightly against her chocolate
colored skin.  The mists swirled and a great door appeared.  She stared in
shock.  "It worked...Gate of Time, take us back!"

     The Gate stepped open, and they passed through, back into the flow
of time.
     
****************

     Serenity was surprised, to say the least, when Wiseman suddenly
boiled out of her head.  Not so suprised as he was, though.  It had only
been seconds since Pluto had vanished.  Saturn was up, but Uranus and
Neptune were still knocked out.  Serenity and Wiseman stared at each other
for a moment.

     He then came to the uncomfortable realization that SHE was one of
his fetters.  His will to destroy her had become so powerful that he had
forged himself a new tie to the mortal plane.  A wraith who lost all its
fetters would be trapped in the shadowlands, where only ghosts dwelled,
unable to touch the world.  

     All his fetters were gone, the mortals he had tainted had been
purged of his power, and his Time Orb was smashed to splinters.  Even
Demand was dead.  Perhaps Nemesis itself might count as a fetter, for he
had forged that world to its current shape...or perhaps not.  If he
destroyed her, he might sever the last bond that enabled him to touch the
world, and then he would become powerless, left to slowly dwindle and fade
in the grey lands of doomed wraiths.  Yet, if he did not destroy her, his
existence would have no purpose.  Serenity, Jurai, Wasyuu...they had to be
destroyed.  Yet, if he destroyed them, he would take away his reasons to
exist.

     And so he hesitated, staring into her eyes.  And deep within him,
the man he had conquered so long ago, stirred, and rose, and seized his
vocal cords while he was caught, transfixed by Serenity's sad and
compassionate gaze.  "Help me, Hotaru..." he choked out, forcing an arm
inside the robes and pulling out an item he had hidden away inside the
tiny spark that was what remained of his self in life.

     Saturn stared, unsure of what to do; the voice was different, more
human, strangely familiar, but not familiar enough for her to recognize
it.  There had been a man, long ago. 

     The arm rose slowly, and on his spectral palm rested a tiny
crystalline tear.  "The Angel of Death gave this to me, long ago.  Use it,
call him so he can take me away."

     Memories swam in her mind, and then she knew him.  Dr. Wise.  "I
thought...you died fighting KALI."

     "I should have died, but I refused death.  I thought I had failed,
that I had to fight the Winter Queen, but the power I used consumed me."
His voice was full of pain.  "Hurry; I can't hold him down much longer."

     "What is he?"  Serenity asked.

     Saturn took the tear from his hands.  "Are you sure you have
to..."

     "I'm already dead.  I just can't leave.  Please, Hotaru...set me
free."  His face contorted for a second.  "NO!  DAMN YOU, WISE!"  Then the
pain faded and raggedly, he said, "Hurry!"

     Saturn gulped and said, "I invoke the power of this tear!  Uriel,
Angel of Death, I call upon thee to make thyself manifest!"

     The tear flashed, as did her sign upon her brow, and the tear
erupted into a vortex of light.  A pillar of flame with wings and six
burning eyes rose up from it.  {I HAVE COME}

     "Take me to face my fate before it is too late,"  Henry Wise
choked out.  "Hurry."

     {I MAKE NO PROMISES AS TO THAT FATE}

     "No hell could be worse than this," he said.

     {THEN LET IT BE DONE.}  The wings enfolded Wiseman, and there was
a great strangled cry.  A puddle of darkness oozed down out of the pillar,
then black flames erupted around it, crushing it in on itself to a dot.
And then it was gone.  The wings unfolded, and there was nothing to be
seen of Wiseman or Wise.  {THE BLACK MOON CRISIS IS OVER.  THE FINAL FROST
IS MELTED, AND SPRING NOW REIGNS.}  He turned to Saturn, and for a moment,
his wings touched her brow.  {YOU BEAR A HEAVY BURDEN, MAY YOU KNOW THE
REST YOU HAVE EARNED.}

     She held out the tear to him.  "This is yours."

     {KEEP IT.  YOU ARE THE SENSHI OF LIFE AND DEATH.  PERHAPS ONE DAY
YOU MAY NEED TO CONTACT ME.}  He laughed.  {PERHAPS A GAME OF CHESS.}

     Saturn and Serenity both laughed as his wings folded in on
themselves and he faded from sight.  An instant later, Uranus and Neptune
moaned and sat up, and a few seconds later, Pluto appeared once more.
Nemesis and her friends began to sit up as well.  "What's so funny?"
Uranus asked.

     Saturn pocketed the tear.  "I wonder if Angels play Twister."

     Serenity laughed so hard she fell down.