"Poor Libra, dying like that," Onogiri 
Sayuri said to Leo as he paced about the 
great Chamber of the Zodiac with her.  She 
wasn't sure why he was here, or what they 
were doing.  "Are they still trying to figure 
out what killed her?"

	"Oh, we all know what killed her; the 
only question is proving it," Leo said 
grimly.  "You'd think Scorpio could have 
had the patience to wait just one day...which 
means Libra probably found something 
out."

	Sayuri, Leo Istarii (for she was now 
Leo's heir), stopped.  "You think she 
murdered Libra?"

	"It looked like a stroke.  But members 
of the Zodiac, as a general rule, do not 
suffer instant death by body failure at her 
age.  Perhaps I am paranoid, but I think 
something is going wrong.  I don't know if 
someone has betrayed us or if someone has 
been subverted by the Dark Kingdom, or 
what.  But I can feel the darkness growing.  
Can't you?"

	Sayuri stopped and closed her eyes and 
opened her mind to the currents of destiny 
as she had been taught.  What was, what is, 
and what should be.  She could feel them 
shifting, subtly, darkly.  Her senses weren't 
good enough to be sure of how or why.  
"Yes, I can," she said.  "It is...isn't it 
possible that the Dark Kingdom murdered 
Libra instead of one of us?"

	Leo sighed, staring at the symbols on 
the floor.  "Yes.  But I don't want to believe 
that."

	"Why?"

	"Because if the Dark Kingdom can 
undetectably murder the Ascendant One of 
the Zodiac, then none of us can hope to 
stand against them, and we are doomed."

	They both stood uncomfortably in the 
silence.  "Perhaps if we can get the Star 
Princess and take her power, since it 
rightfully belongs to us..."

	"We need the Star Orb.  Which 
remains lost.  So long as it remains lost, 
even if we take her, all we can do is stare at 
her.  The Orb is the key to unlock that door.  
And all our divinations for thousands of 
years have been unable to..."

	There was the sound of running feet.  
Leo slid smoothly into a ready position for 
combat; Sayuri imitated him a little more 
clumsily.  

	Cancer ran in, her red hair flying about 
wildly.  "I have...well, news.  Some good, 
some bad, all urgent."

	"Go on," Leo said.

	"The Senshi are after the Star Orb."

	Leo stared, his brown eyes filled with 
shock.  "They found it?"

	"Apparently, it is in the Dark 
Kingdom.  We don't have the full details, 
but the majority of them have gone to the 
Dark Kingdom to get it.  And it looks like 
the Dark Kingdom is preparing to attack."

	"We have to get it," Leo said.  "And 
we have to stop them."

	"I know.  I just finished talking to 
some of our agents and found all this out.  
We'd best gather...those we can trust, and 
decide what to do," Cancer said.  She 
glanced briefly at Sayuri, then at Leo.

	Leo nodded.  "We have to act, and act 
quickly.  Come with us, Sayuri."

	"Yes, sir."  Sayuri followed him out of 
the room and prayed she wasn't about to get 
in over her head.


*****

Naru:     I'm tired of always running
          I've grown tired of the night
          I wish I had some cunning,
          Had some power, had some might.

     We see a collage of Naru running from 
monsters,
grabbed by monsters, trapped inside big 
moss balls by
monsters, etc.

Sailors:  You don't need to keep on running.
          You don't need to fear the night.
          We can save you with our cunning,
          With our power, with our might.

     We see a collage of images of Usagi and 
the other
Sailors saving Naru and many other people 
from monster
attacks.

Naru:     I don't want someone to save me;
          I'd just like to save myself
          I don't want to be a helpless doll
          That must sit upon the shelf.

     We see Naru sitting at her window, 
looking out on the
starry night sky of the city.  One by one, 
lines trace the
constellations.

Pluto:    If you want to have the power
          You must reach into your heart
          Look inside to find your strength
          For that's where power starts

     We see Pluto holding out an eight-
pointed star, which
hovers just above her hand.

*****

Sailor Moon Z:

Series Concept by Jeff Hosmer and John 
Biles
Primary Writer this Episode: John Biles

Based on the Series Sailor Moon, 
copyrighted by a whole lot
of people who aren't us.

Episode 23
"Waiting for the Hammer to Fall.
 Can the Zodiac be Stopped?"

*****

	Steven paced nervously.  Probably nothing was going 
to happen.  Probably he was just missing a day of school.  
Probably Minako would emerge triumphant.  "Still nothing, 
Ryo?" he asked.

	Ryo looked up from his homework.  "I have not had a 
vision since the last time you asked me that, thirty seconds 
ago."

	"I'm not sensing any danger," Augur said.  There were 
magical advisor cats everywhere, snoozing under the table, 
lying draped on people's shoulders and heads, half-stuck 
into cabinets and so on.  The advisor cats had all mobilized 
to help guard Naru, should the need for fighting arise.

	Futsu-Nushi no Kami stirred from his nap.  "Hermes is 
still on patrol, right?"

	"I think so," Ryo said.

	"We're fine, then.  Dogs aren't good for much, but they 
have good noses." Futsu-Nushi no Kami rolled over and 
went back to sleep.

	"I should be with them," Naru said.

	Umino sighed.  "Naru-chan, honey, we just had this 
discussion fifteen minutes ago."

	"I don't want to be coddled."

	"Miss Anderson won't coddle you at all if you don't 
get your homework done," Clark said, not looking up from 
his book.  He was taking notes from the novel he was 
reading, his hand moving jerkily across the page of his 
notebook; they could all tell he was tense, but weren't sure 
why.  "I can give you all an English lesson if you need a 
distraction."

	There was a terrible silence.

	Then Umino said, "That might help, actually."

	Steven said in English, "Not a problem for me."

	Ryo said, "No, no, that won't be necessary, Maguson-
sensei."

	"No English!" Himeko said.  "Please, no English."

	Steven went and stared out the window, looking at his 
reflection in the glass.  The courtyard of the temple was 
perfectly peaceful.  Go and Hermes were roaming around 
the grounds, watching for trouble.  His hand crept down to 
reassure him that the sword was still at his hip; he could 
feel the faint pulse of its power as his hand drew near it.  It 
was a dream given form.  It made him feel a little better to 
have it, even though he knew little of how to use it best; it 
helped that the blade itself would guide his hands, once 
drawn.  And he'd learned the basics of it while staying at 
Dia's estates.  Unfortunately, mastery of the sword took 
years, and he didn't have years.
 
	"Let's do another horoscope," Naru said to Augur.

	"I don't think the stars have moved much since..." he 
began, then stopped as she stared at him.  He licked his lips 
nervously.  "Alright, let's do another horoscope."

	Himeko put her homework aside and turned to watch, 
as did Steven.

	Naru got out a piece of paper from her backpack and 
quickly drew a circle, then began to cover it with symbols, 
periodically checking a large book she also extracted from 
her pack.  He could see tiny strands of energy flowing 
around her hands as she worked, and around the cat as well.  
The Star Power.  His own power of the Sight was growing 
stronger; he couldn't use magic very much, but he could see 
it, and he was getting better at telling what it was for.  He 
could see the Star Power inside her, if he made any effort to 
gaze a little deeper, could see the bond that tied her to 
Umino, could see Augur tapping the power as well.

	The air was full of things which no one else but him 
and maybe Rei could see.  Rei didn't have the full range of 
the Sight which he did, although her own senses were 
better trained than his.  It was sometimes good, and 
sometimes it just meant he knew there were things going on 
he couldn't do anything about.

	"See?" Augur said.  "Everything is going to be fine."

	Naru frowned at the horoscope.  "It's all so vague."

	"Probably because you're fatigued from too many 
horoscopes.  Also, we don't know the best questions to ask, 
yet."

	"Best to just work on your homework," Artemis said.  
"Fretting yourself to death won't help."

	Naru tore up the horoscope in frustration.  "This 
waiting is killing me."

	"It's going to be alright," Umino said.  "The Senshi 
beat the Dark Kingdom back when they were a lot weaker.  
They'll be fine."

	"Pluto is too obnoxious to die," Himeko said.

	"AAAAH!" Ryo suddenly shouted.

	Everyone leaped to their feet; cats suddenly sprang 
alert everywhere.  "What?  What did you see?" Naru asked 
in a panic.

	"Oh man, Daichi's not going to be happy," Ryo said.

	"What?  What is it?" Himeko asked, grabbing his 
hands.

	"He's going to get a soccer ball in the face," Ryo said.  
"Probably this morning."

	Himeko grimaced.  "Don't panic us over a soccer 
game."

	"It was just like...for a moment, I thought it was 
coming at my face," Ryo said.  "I'm sorry."

	Steven sighed and stared out the window again.  I 
hope he's okay, Steven thought.  Daichi had stayed at 
school because he didn't even have any weak powers and 
he missed class too much without doing it deliberately.  But 
he's probably worried too, Steven thought.

**********
	
	Momonochi Hikaru, the school nurse, sat back up.  
"He'll be fine, Hikaru," he said to Hibino Hikaru.  "He just 
needs a little rest."

	She let out her breath.  "Good," she said.  "He took 
that soccer ball right in the nose."

	"See, I told you," Daichi said.

	Hibino Hikaru put her hands on her hips.  "Don't be 
macho, Daichi.  You could have had a broken nose."

	"Well, it is possible to die from having your nose 
driven into your brain," Momonochi Hikaru said.  "But that 
doesn't happen easily."

 	Hibino Hikaru's eyes crossed in horror at the thought.

 	Daichi got up.  "Well, back to class."

	They headed out into the hallway.  Hikaru asked very 
softly, "Is Himeko on a Sailor mission?"

	"Yeah," he said softly.  "Big strike against the Dark 
Kingdom.  I can't say more about it."

	"Is she going to be okay?" Himeko asked as they 
started down the stairs.

	Daichi paused and stared at her.  "Who are you and 
what did you do with the real Hikaru?"

	Hikaru punched Daichi in the arm, startling him again.  
"Daichi, I am capable of worrying about people, you 
know."
 
	"You two have been feuding for years."

	"Stupidly," Hikaru said.  "Like I told her...I've given 
up.  I know you'll never love me, not even if the heavens 
open up and tell you to.  And if we're not fighting over you, 
there's no reason for us to fight.  I've been so obsessed with 
chasing you that I hardly have any friends.  Because no one 
wants to listen to me ramble on about you all the time."  
She sighed and stared down the stairs as she started down 
them.  "You knew about the whole killing the ninja-me 
thing, didn't you?"

	"Yeah," he said.  "I couldn't figure out how to snap her 
out of that."

	"Well, I did.  And I just...I saw we were going to be 
friends.  Himeko and you and I.  It's not what I longed for, 
but it's a lot better than what we've had.  You have both 
been better to me than I deserved for all the aggravation 
I've caused you."  Hikaru sighed.  "You know..."

	She stopped on the landing.  "I joined the 
Transdimensional Defense Club because you joined it.  I 
thought it was really silly, but now..."

	She stared out the window as he caught up with her.  
"I've seen monsters.  I've FOUGHT monsters.  And rival 
groups of...I don't know what to call the Zodiac.  There are 
things, things out there that would destroy us, wipe out 
humanity, wipe out our world.  Some of them may be after 
me, thinking I know more about the Senshi than I do.  
Doesn't it scare you sometimes, Daichi?"

	Daichi stared out silently at the grounds of Tsunami.  
A tough looking old cat snoozed on one of the benches by 
one of the walkways.  Several cleaning ladies were pushing 
a cart across the grounds towards one of the dorms.  A 
robin perched in a tree, watching the cat warily.  

	"I nearly died several weeks ago," he said softly.

	Hikaru froze in place.  She remembered her own near 
brush with death.

	"Fighting against Pyroxenite. He's one of the Dark 
Kingdom's generals.  Robellia and I had to fight him, all by 
ourselves, while Mars and Erika and Hime-chan were in the 
middle of a magical rite."

	"Robellia?" Hikaru asked.

	"It's a long story, but many people from here have 
duplicates in the Kingdom of Magic, where we had the 
fight.  Robellia is your duplicate."

	Hikaru's eyes widened.  "Did she...I mean...does 
she..."

	"She is a magician, like everyone there.  Anyway, I 
had to block a flame blast from Pyroxenite with my body to 
protect them.  I should have just killed him when I had him 
helpless earlier, but I couldn't do it.  I couldn't kill someone 
I thought was no longer a threat."  He shuddered.

	She reached towards his shoulder, then pulled her 
hand back.  "You're not a killer," she said softly.

	"I may have to be," he said.  "If the Dark Kingdom 
invades, I can't afford to hesitate.  I can't let someone get 
away who might...who might hurt someone later.  But I 
don't...I don't want to have to do that.  I wish I could forget 
all this, but I can't.  If the Senshi...if the Senshi fail, there's 
only going to be us.  And it's going to be a war."  His hands 
clenched into fists.  "If Himeko dies...I...I will probably 
become very, very stupid.  And it's going to be your job to 
stop me."

	Hikaru gulped.

	"I'm a soccer player, not a general.  I can get people to 
follow me, but I'm not a tactician.  And if Himeko dies...I 
will do something crazy.  Don't let me.  And if I die...you're 
going to be in charge."

	Hikaru felt her nerves jangle.  "Don't say that."

	"It's you or Yuu.  Would you put Yuu in charge of a 
war?"

	"No," she said softly.

	"Maybe...maybe it won't come down to this.  The 
Senshi have beat all their previous foes, but now...two at 
once...I don't know.  If it comes down to us, I fear we won't 
have Hime-chan to lead us.  And if we don't have her, I 
don't know if I will be of any use."  He turned to face her.  
"Which means, that it will be up to you."

	"But...but I'm not a general either," Hikaru said.  "I 
can do a little martial arts."  She executed a reasonably 
nimble snap kick.  "I was studying it to try to impress you, 
but... you never noticed."  She sighed.  "But I'm not a 
general."

	"You're a leader," Daichi said.  "As shown by the 
fanclub you led all these years.  And you've got strength.  
You just never used it for anything useful before.  And you 
can be more ruthless than me or Hime-chan, if you have to.  
Yuki is a good tactician; we're going to need her.  Listen to 
her advice, if it comes down to...down to you."

	She nodded solemnly.  "I will."

	"We'll know by tonight, if they're coming back okay.  
I think.  The club will need to meet either tonight or 
tomorrow, so get the word out."

	"I will," she said.

	"We'd better get back to class," he said, starting down 
the stairs.  "I'm counting on you, Hikaru."

	"Pyroxenite..."  The name suddenly clicked with her.  
"He's the one who sent people to kidnap me.  Is he dead?"

	"Yes," Daichi said.  "I nearly died stopping the 
explosion when he tried to blow himself up once he saw he 
couldn't win."

	"Good," she said.  "I don't know how much I can trust 
the Senshi to succeed, having seen them in action, 
but...maybe most of them are smarter than Minako."

	"Yes, they are," Daichi said.  He sounded quite 
confident of that.  "Not that it's too hard to be smarter than 
Minako."

	"So you know who they all are?  I've figured out some 
of them, but..."

	He continued down the stairs.  "I know them all.  I'd 
be with the other Auxillaries, but I don't even have weak 
powers, so Himeko told me to go to class."

	"Also, you're going to flunk if you don't go to class 
more often," Hikaru said.

	Daichi winced.  "You're so blunt, Hikaru."

	"I'm good at that," she said.  It felt good, being able to 
be really honest with him.  "The truth hurts sometimes.  It 
hurt me.  But whatever doesn't kill us makes us stronger, I 
guess."

	She paused at the bottom step.  "You never called me 
Hikaru to my face before."

	He paused, blinking.  

	"Until today.  I was always 'Hibino-san'."

	"I didn't want to encourage you," he said.  "By being 
too familiar."

	She shook her head, as if shaking thoughts out of it, 
then smiled.  "Let's go, Daichi."

	"Let's go."

***********

	Yuuichiro had the distinct feeling something had gone 
wrong.  He'd wanted, NEEDED to help them, so he'd 
jumped after them at the last second so they couldn't say 
no.  Part of him knew this was probably suicidal, but he had 
to go.  Rei needed him.  Even if she probably didn't need 
him.

	He'd always been able to tell he loved her more than 
she loved him; he accepted that rationally, if not 
emotionally.  But she was the one for him; he hoped she 
would see that one day, though he feared she would not.  
But whether she did or not, he would do his best for her.  
He could do no less.

	Unfortunately, right now, his best consisted of 
wandering lost through seemingly endless corridors, armed 
only with a wooden sword and his wits.  Dark blue and 
green crystal glowed softly around him, reflecting distorted 
images of him back at him.  

	He stopped, leaning against the wall, and tried to 
figure out what to do.  Just wandering mindlessly would 
only get him to starve to death or fall down some chasm.  
He sat down and began to meditate; it wasn't easy to 
imagine the Sacred Fire in his mind, but once he did, it 
soothed him.  He gazed into it, hoping for some vision.

	What he saw was more frustrating than helpful.  He 
saw his first meeting with Rei, but this time, she was as 
taken with him as he was with her.  Long walks in the park, 
and days spent in prayer before the fire together.  The lore 
which eluded him in reality came to him easily in his 
vision, and together they battled evil.

	He did not want to watch this story of things that 
might have been but weren't, but he couldn't stop himself.   
It hurt deep down, to see these things, and know they 
couldn't be.  Because something was missing.  He was 
inadequate, somehow.  He'd done something wrong, or 
something was wrong with him.  He wasn't worthy of this 
happiness.  But Rei was.  She deserved to smile like that, 
and yet, she seemed unhappy so often.

	Because of him.  Because he was a failure.  He felt a 
great gloom settle over him, felt his energy draining away, 
replaced by despair.  He never did anything right.  He was 
hopeless.  What was the point of even trying?  Nothing, 
nothing at all.

	He sat and basted in his own despair.   

***********


	"Yes, ma'am.  He skipped school today," Takashi said.

	Polly frowned.  "And he's not home sick?"

	"No, ma'am.  His girlfriend..."

	"I'm his girlfriend!" Polly snapped.

	"Sorry, ma'am.  His mistress isn't in class either."

	She frowned, tapping her phone with one finger.  "If 
he doesn't show up by the time school lets out, call me 
again.  I will have to do something."

	"Yes, ma'am."  Takashi hung up while Polly put away 
her cellphone and headed back to class.  I hope he's alright, 
she thought.  Stupid senshi have probably gotten him killed 
or something.  	

***********

	Steven's head came up from his homework, as did 
Ryo's.  Something was wrong.  He wasn't sure what it was, 
but something was definitely wrong.  "Did you feel 
something, Ryo?" he asked.

	"Yes," he said.

	Himeko frowned.  "You too?"

	"I didn't feel anything," Clark said.

	Naru frowned.  "Maybe...I'm not sure if I felt 
something.  I may be imagining it."

	"I felt nothing," Umino said.  "Maybe something 
changed history?  And you all felt it because of...umm, 
something.  Maybe not."  Umino frowned, scratching out 
an equation.

	Cassandra cocked her head and sniffed the air.  "I do 
not think history has been changed by time travel, but it is 
possible something momentous just happened."

	"Well, evil isn't rushing over the world in a great tidal 
wave," Steven said.  

	"Maybe it means you will all fuse together to form 
Voltron," Umino said.

	They stared at him.

	"A joke," he said.  "Man, it's getting dark outside.  I 
guess we'd better order some takeout."

	"Pizza," Steven suggested.

	"I want ramen," Umino said.

	"Anything as long as it has some fish in it," Himeko 
said.

	"We're going to argue for an hour, then decide on 
pepperoni and anchovy pizza," Ryo said.

	"That works," Himeko said.

	"I guess I could handle that," Umino said.

	"Fine by me," Clark said.

	"Excellent," Steven said.  "I have coupons 
somewhere."

	"Can we add hamburger?" Naru asked.

	"Sure," Steven said, and went and placed the order.

	"That didn't take an hour," Umino said to Ryo.

	"You thought I had a vision about what kind of pizza 
we would order?" Ryo asked, laughing.

	"You...."  Umino was mad, then started to laugh.  
"How often do you do that?"

	"Not every often," Ryo said.  "Or it wouldn't work."

	Steven went and placed the order, then came back.  "I 
hope we're not here all night."

	"I expect it'll be done one way or another soon," 
Umino said.  "Unless maybe the Dark Kingdom has weird 
time flows and it's only been seconds there."

	Luna frowned.  "Well, they beat Beryl herself faster 
than this."

	"But if Jadeite had beaten them, I expect he would be 
sending forces to finish us off, using the Silver Crystal," 
Artemis said.  "So we shouldn't get too down."

	"I think we're in far more danger from the Zodiac than 
of them losing," Go said.  "After all, they beat the Dark 
Kingdom before, when they were much weaker and only 
five of them.  Nine Senshi, plus Endymion, went this time, 
all much stronger.  I'm sure they're just fine."

	Isis stalked over to Ryo.  "No visions?" she asked.

	"Nothing useful," he said.  "Just worries about my 
homework and Ami."

	"Maybe I can help," she said.

	"Are you any good at chemistry?" he asked.

	"That is a form of alchemy, is it not?" she asked.

	"Sort of."

	"I have some knowledge of that field."

	"I can help," Clark said, perking up a little.  "I am a 
science teacher, mostly."

	"And me," Umino said.  "I'm just smart."

	Ryo laughed a little.  "Alright, let's see what we can 
figure out together."

**********

	Tethys walked down the tunnel, trying to decide what 
to do.  She felt guilty about leading the Senshi into a trap.  
Which was entirely stupid, given that she owed them 
nothing AND she hadn't even known there was one.  She 
also felt irritated that the extent of Jadeite's reaction to her 
return had been a brief hello and assigning her to serve 
under Magnetite.  Playing flunky to a withered old man.  
Again.  Not that Magnetite was a horrible boss, but he was 
basically a glorified butler.

	His first order to her had been for her to go rest and 
report to him in the morning.  But she couldn't sleep.  Not 
with that disgusting Aurora snuggling up to Jadeite.  How 
could he prefer a brainwashed teenager over her?  It was 
pathetic.  Unless, maybe, he was the one being brainwashed 
and this was all some Senshi trick...  She dismissed the 
thought.  The Senshi were sure this had been a kidnapping, 
and she doubted they could act well enough to fool her.

	Well, maybe if I play Civilization and burn a few 
cities, I'll feel better, she told herself.  "Horus, can you..."  
She paused.  Dammit, no Horus, no computers, no snack 
food, and no entertainment.  She'd forgotten how utterly 
boring the Dark Kingdom was, until now.  About all there 
was for entertainment was tormenting each other or the 
occasional monster attack.

	Then she heard soft crying and mumbling up ahead, 
around a corner.  Cautiously, she crept up, feeling like 
being petty.  She saw the temple boy, Rei's grandfather's 
flunky, sitting cross-legged and weeping.  There was an 
Imp on his shoulder, draining his sorrow energy.  Imps 
were annoying as hell, and Tethys hated them.  They would 
nudge your emotions, and then once you broke down, 
they'd drain your energy.

	She squeezed off a shot with what energy Magnesite 
had given her, and the Imp caught fire and died.  She then 
strode up to the boy, examining him.  He looked strong, but 
stupid.  The sort of person who made a perfect pawn.  
Hmm, yes, this might have potential.  

	She assumed a human appearance, and approached 
him as he was coming out of his Imp-induced haze.  "Hello, 
there, are you alright?" she asked.

	He looked up at her in confusion.  "You don't look like 
a monster."

	Appearances can be deceiving, she thought.  "My 
name is Theresa," she said.  I can cover up my lack of 
knowledge about his homeland by being a foreigner, she 
thought.  "I was visiting Japan and these horrible monsters 
kidnapped me.  I managed to escape, and I've been on the 
run ever since."

	"They have Rei," he said hollowly.  "And I don't know 
what to do about it."

	"Who is Rei?" Tethys asked, giving him a hand up.

	"She's..."  He struggled for words.  "I am one of her 
grandfather's disciples.  She was kidnapped by the Dark 
Kingdom as well, and I came to try to rescue her with some 
people, but somehow, I got separated from her."

	"Well, I know my way around the places the Youma 
often don't go," Tethys said.  "Just follow me."

	He nodded, and Tethys headed off down the tunnel, 
trying to decide what to do with her new pawn.

**********

	Polly strode across the grounds of Tsunami.  Time to 
go find out what is going on, she thought.  She'd been 
staying away from Steven, much as she didn't want to, 
because she'd been afraid of blowing her secret identity to 
Minako.  But now...she had a very bad feeling, and she had 
to know what was going on.

	And then there was a tap on her shoulder.  She spun, 
only to find Leo, Virgo, Capricorn, Cancer, and Leo's 
Istarii, Sayuri, all together.  "Gemini-P, we have need of 
you," Leo said.

	"I'm busy," she said.

	"It's about Libra's death."

	Polly winced.  "Alright, alright, let's go."

********
	 
	"Still no word?" Daichi asked Himeko over the phone.

	"No.  We're starting to worry, but Augur keeps saying 
that the lack of good news is not conclusive proof of bad 
news, so we're trying to not panic," Himeko said, her voice 
tense.  "And I can't see anything bad or good in the near 
future.  I suppose maybe I should go consult the Time 
Pool."

	"Yeah.  I've called a meeting of the TDDC tonight.  
Do you think you can make it?"

	"Probably not," she said.  "But I'll try.  What time?"

	"Eight."

	"I'll see what I can do," she said.  "You be careful, 
okay?"

	"Yeah, I will be," he said.  "You too."

	"I'm always careful."

	"Liar."

	She frowned.  "I am!"

	He laughed to hide his tension.  "Let me know if 
anything happens."  

	"I will," she said firmly.  "You be careful too."

	"You're repeating yourself," he said.

	"I am not!" she snapped, then tried to calm down.  
"Just...I don't want to see you get hurt."

	"Me neither," he said.  "I expect you're in more danger 
than me."

	"Well, if anyone was going to attack, I expect they 
would have attacked by now," Himeko said.  "I'm sure 
we're safe."

***********
	
	"We should strike now," Aries urged, striding back 
and forth.

	Scorpio turned from her equipment and leaned against 
her workbench.  "Not yet.  The past disasters of the Zodiac 
against the Senshi have come from piecemeal, poorly 
planned assaults.  While it is possible the Sailors have all 
rushed off to die at the hands of the Dark Kingdom, it is 
also possible that the Senshi are setting a trap for us.  While 
Sailor Moon is not very smart, some of the others are.  We 
may miss an opportunity, but I am going to wait to strike 
until I am sure the Senshi have been eliminated."  She 
looked thoughtful.  "However, I can think of another 
possible threat we can probably eliminate now.  It should 
draw the Senshi out...yes."

	"What are you thinking?" he asked.

	"Gather a group of our Star Guard and get Taurus and 
Pisces to help you.  I want to see the Trans-Dimensional 
Defense Club eliminated.  And I especially want to see 
Ichiwara Yuki captured.  And Hibino Hikaru.  They seem 
to know a lot about the Senshi.  Information which may be 
useful for planning our master stroke."

	Aries nodded.  "Yes, Ascendent One.  We will go at 
once."

	"Don't be too hasty.  They are just children, but they 
have good weaponry and the Senshi may be watching."
	
	"I'll be careful," he said.

	She didn't need her Zodiac powers to know he 
wouldn't.  She resolved to call Pisces and ask Pisces to 
keep a rein on him.  

********
	
	What a trusting sucker, Tethys thought as she led 
Yuuichiro into a small cave where she had decided to stash 
him for now.  He doesn't suspect me at all.  "Alright.  You 
can rest here, and I'll see about scavenging us some food."

	"I don't want to rest," he said stubbornly.

	"You got drained by an imp," she said.  "You're in no 
condition to fight.  There are dangerous things in these 
tunnels."  She hoped none of the really dangerous things 
was feeling bold enough to come this close to the occupied 
tunnels.

	He sighed.  "I'm so useless."

	"You are not useless.  Just tired," she said.  "Once 
you've rested and I've found us some energy, we can look 
for Rei, okay?"

	"Alright," he said, sighing.  

	She watched him fall asleep, then went off to find him 
some energy and try to decide what to do with him.  

********

	Naru paced like a caged leopard.  She'd finished all 
her homework and eaten dinner, and now she had nothing 
to do but fret.  Umino watched her walk for a minute, then 
said, "Well, since we don't have anything to do...maybe we 
could play a game or something?"

	"Did you bring anything?" Naru asked.

	"Umm...not really.  I have some cards, though."

	"I know a tarot card game," Augur suggested.  

	"I'm going to go consult the Time Pool," Himeko 
announced.  "I'll be back soon."

	"Maybe someone should go with you," Clark 
suggested.  "Best we not split up more than we have to."

	Cassandra said, "I'll go with you."

	"Me too," Pokota insisted.

	Hermes concentrated and assumed his humanoid form, 
a sturdy, dark-haired dwarf.  "And I," he said.  "It'll get me 
away from all these cats."

	Go raised his head from his nap and simply glared at 
Hermes, who did his best to ignore him.  Isis simply head-
butted his leg.  "Good luck," she said.

	"Thank you," he said, surprised.  "Let's go."

	Himeko transformed and summoned the gate of Time, 
stepping into a space beyond space, where Pluto's pool sat 
and surveyed the future.

	The Younger Pluto concentrated and struck the pool 
with her staff.  The waters rippled, and images began to 
flow and flux within the water.  Cassandra said, "You have 
to calm your mind."

	Hermes waved a small crystal lens over the pool.  
Pokota asked, "What are you doing?"

	"Recording it all," he said.

	Himeko cleared her mind, and focused on the image of 
Crystal Tokyo.  Nothing happened.  She frowned and 
concentrated again, this time thinking of the date instead of 
the place.

	She couldn't see anything at all, just darkness and the 
ripple of water.  "It isn't working."

	Cassandra stared intently, then waved her paws over 
the water.  She frowned, then closed her eyes.  Her body 
flowed and changed, growing taller and bipedal, until 
finally, she was human, short and thin with long purple 
hair.  She began to wave her arms over the water, fingers 
flying freely.  Finally, she said, "It would appear..."  She 
hesitated.

	"What?" the Younger Pluto asked.

	"It probably means that it is currently sufficiently 
unlikely for you to be alive at that time, that you can no 
longer see it.  Since your powers only work on the time 
stream in your lifetime," Hermes said.

	The Younger Pluto twitched.  "Water!  Show me my 
most likely death!"

	The waters rippled, and now she gazed upon the 
burning wreckage of Tsunami High School.  The Trans-
Dimensional Defense Club lay scattered through the 
wreckage, dead, as monsters rampaged across the school.  
She could see herself and Hikaru, back to back, trying to 
guard Daichi's unconscious body from on-rushing hordes of 
monsters.  

	Then Jadeite strode through the horde, with Hematite 
to his left and Rei, clad in black armor and her sigil 
gleaming blackly from her brow, to his right.  The Younger 
Pluto watched her vision-self gesture at Hikaru and Daichi, 
who glowed and vanished.  And then Rei slammed her 
hammer into the ground.  It cracked open and half-
swallowed up the Vision-Pluto, who retaliated with a Dead 
Scream.  Rei battered it away with her hammer, and then 
Jadeite threw a glowing green bolt at Vision-Pluto's chest.

	The blast staggered Vision-Pluto, who began to wave 
her staff over her head, with the end glowing brighter and 
brighter, purple energies building around the amethyst set 
into a golden circle at the end.  Rei and Hematite rushed 
forward, and Vision-Pluto hurled the glowing purple  
energies at Rei, who prepared to parry it.  But at the last 
second, they turned and immolated Hematite, who 
screamed and collapsed.

	Seconds later, the Hammer of Mars crushed Vision-
Pluto's skull.  And the waters glowed brightly, then faded 
to reflect only the sky.

	The Younger Pluto shivered.  "No!  It can't happen 
like that!"

	"The future is not set in stone; it can still be changed," 
Cassandra said, shuddering.  "Though if Rei has gone over 
to Jadeite..."

	"If she hurts Daichi, I'll beat her to death with her own 
hammer," Himeko said angrily.  "I will KILL her."

	Pokota said, "Hime-chan, I'm sure Daichi will be 
alright."  He hugged her as much as a three inch tall lion 
doll can hug anyone.

	Cassandra put a hand on her shoulder.  "It is only what 
may be.  Do not let it cloud your judgement, or you will be 
unable to prevent it coming to pass."

	"Can you get this thing to show you the Sailors?"  
Hermes asked.

	"My powers only extend to seeing the future," the 
Younger Pluto said agitatedly.  "Like Ryo.  And Steven 
only sees the present."

	"If there was someone who could see the past, who 
could tell us what happened..." Hermes mused.
 
	"If there is, I don't know who it could be," the 
Younger Pluto said.  "But maybe the others will know. 
Let's go."

***********

	"You think she was murdered?" Polly asked in horror.

	"The Ascended One does not drop dead of natural 
causes while ascended," Leo said.  His voice vibrated with 
power and an undercurrent of fear.  "Either the Dark 
Kingdom did it, or else, one of our own is a traitor."

	Polly hugged herself nervously.  "Surely none of us 
would..."

	"If the Dark Kingdom can murder the Ascended One 
without being caught, we are doomed," Leo said.  "But 
surely they would rub it in our faces.  And I find it hard to 
believe they could pierce our fortress and leave no trace at 
all.  It must be treason, and I think Scorpio did it."

	Everyone stiffened.  "But...why bother to murder 
Libra when her own Ascendance was the very next day 
anyway?" Polly asked.

	"I think Libra knew too much," Leo said.  "But I don't 
have proof.  I just know that I don't trust Scorpio and 
someone has to be responsible."  He frowned.  "But all I 
have are suspicions.  However, if we can get the Orb of 
Stars, then we will be in a position of strength."

	Saggitarius, who had joined them after they picked up 
Polly, shifted nervously, his hooves clattering.  He was the 
eldest of the current Zodiac, strangely ageless, and the only 
one who wasn't human.  He was a centaur, and if his stories 
and the records were true, he had seen thousands of years 
go by.  No one was sure why he was still alive, though he 
claimed his father had been a god.  "If we get the Orb, 
Zodiac law requires we turn it over to the Ascended One."

	"Yes, it does," Leo said.  "Unfortunately, I think we 
will have no choice but to bend the rules."  

	"If we start doing that, what makes us any better than 
those we're opposing?" Sayuri asked.

	"Rules cannot cover every potential situation," Leo 
said.  "This may come down to civil war, where the rules 
have no meaning.  If Scorpio is innocent, we can turn over 
the Orb when we are sure of that.  But if she is not, we need 
to be ready for her."

	"We should get my brother," Polly said.  "He needs to 
hear this."

	"Are you sure we can trust him?" Leo asked.  "I do not 
like the look in his eyes."

	Polly glared at Leo.  "He is my BROTHER.  He would 
never betray me, and even though he can be a butt 
sometimes, he's not a bad guy.  And..."  She frowned.  
"Without him, I can't turn into Gemini-P to actually be of 
any use."

	Cancer sighed.  "Alright.  If we must, we must.  Let us 
go and see him, and then we must prepare for our strike."

***********
	
	"See the past?" Naru asked.  "I can't..."  Then she 
paused, remembering Yumeni's painting.  It had been a 
painting of the Star Kingdom, she suddenly realized.  Of 
it's fall.  And that other painting...

	Naru said, "Do any of you know Yumeno Yumeni?"

	"She was one of the Seven Shadows," Ryo said.

	"She's that artist, right?" Umino asked.

	"I've heard of her," Clark said.

	Steven said, "Not really."

	Naru said, "I think she may have some ability to see 
past events...a lot of her paintings show past events. But 
they were all really extremely in the past, so if she has a 
power, it may not work for recent events.  Or things in 
other dimensions.  Also, I'm thinking we should see if 
Professor Tomoe can spy into the Dark Kingdom with his 
lattice-thing."

	"I don't know if it can actually pierce dimensional 
barriers," Umino said.  "Can't hurt to try, though."

	"Alright," Himeko said.  "Give Yumeni and Tomoe-
sensei a call.  I have to go see Daichi."

	"Call him," Naru said.  "We may be all that's left, and 
we can't afford to split up."

	"I _have_ to go see him," Himeko said.  "The Dark 
Kingdom may be about to attack!"

	"You didn't see any of us dead there, did you?" Steven 
asked.

	Himeko blinked.  "No, just people from the TDDC."

	"Which could mean that what you saw is the result of 
you going off by yourself to see him," Steven continued.

	Himeko stared at him in horror.  "But...that could 
mean he's in danger!"

	"I'll go," Clark said.  "I need to go pick up the papers 
that were due today, anyway.  They may need your time 
powers to help Yumeni."

	Himeko fumed, then nodded.  "Go.  Quickly.  We 
meet in the audiovisual room in the Science Building."

	Clark nodded.  "Right.  I'll be back as soon as I can."

********

	"Perhaps we should stay here," Chester said to the 
others.  "So that if you die, we will be able to notify your 
Istarii.  Polly and I are close to Nadir, and I don't know if 
we would be of much use."

	"We need all the manpower we can get, but I see your 
point," Leo said.  "Sayuri, you will be staying here.  If we 
fall, someone will need to inform the others of the presence 
of the Star Orb in the Dark Kingdom."

	She frowned.  "I want to go with you!"

	"Gemini may be an inch from Nadir, but at least they 
are trained," Leo said.  "Your training has just begun.  You 
will stay, ready to pass on the information, should it 
become necessary."

	She frowned and nodded.  "Alright."

	"Alright," Leo said.  "Capricorn, we will need one of 
your dimensional shift devices."

	He nodded.  "Follow me."

*********

	Professor Tomoe sighed.  "It's not designed for 
looking into other dimensions.  So if they're in the Dark 
Kingdom, I won't be able to find them.  But I will see what 
I can find."

	"Isn't there some way to reattune it?" Himeko asked.

	"Not without having the right data so I don't have to 
try to search every possible dimension," Tomoe said.  "And 
everyone who might be able to give me the information I 
need is gone."

	Himeko frowned, though Tomoe couldn't see it over 
the phone.  "Well, try and scan our dimension for them, let 
us know what you find."

	"I will," he said, his voice tense.  "Let me know if 
anything else happens."

	"I will," she said.  "I will."

*********
	
	Yumeni walked nervously into the room.  "Hi, Naru-
chan.  What exactly is going on?"
	
	Naru took a deep breath, then started trying to explain 
everything.

**********

	Tethys still wasn't quite sure what to do with her new 
pawn.  It might be possible to empower him enough to 
enable him to survive against low-grade Youma, but he 
wouldn't be strong enough to take down Rei.  Not with 
Vulcan's Hammer.

	She frowned.  There had to be something.  Perhaps 
they had enough of a bond for him to manage to break the 
conditioning on Rei.  Or he could help her grab Rei as she 
slept, and they could get her to a conditioning cabinet...

	Everything she thought of seemed very risky.  

	A vornskir scampered across her path.  She idly 
grabbed it and drained its life force.  Is it just me, she asked 
herself, or has the amount of vermin gone up?  Jadeite must 
be bringing in enough energy that some of it is spilling over 
and supporting more creatures.  

	She felt a tinge of pride for a moment, then decided to 
go see if she could wiggle any information about what 
exactly was up with Rei out of Magnetite.	

**********


	"Isis, it's not easy for me to drive when you try to 
climb onto my shoulders."  Clark said for what felt like the 
hundredth time.

	"But your backseat is full of junk,"  Isis protested.

	"It's *not* `junk',"  he corrected her, an impatient edge 
in his voice, "A couple of pieces of scientific equipment 
and a few books doesn't make a junkyard."

	"It's still cluttered, and it takes up most of your 
backseat."  She insisted.

	Raiden intervened, having assumed his human form.  
Other than having green hair, he looked like a college 
student who might've been a bit of a party animal.  Besides, 
the tension he was getting off of Clark suggested that any 
further irritation on Isis's part might end up with her flying 
out the window.

	"You can sit in my lap,"  Raiden suggested.

	"I think not,"  she replied, then hopped back into the 
backseat.  With a resigned sigh, she tried to find a place to 
curl up.

	Raiden looked worriedly at Clark.  "You okay?"  he 
asked the teacher.

	"No,"  Clark replied tensely, "but there's nothing that 
can be done about it.  Not a blasted thing."  he whispered 
the last part.

	"Don't worry.  I'm sure that Jupiter's all right,"  Raiden 
said.  "Even if she's dead, it's not like it hasn't happened 
before."

	The car swerved briefly as Clark's arms spasmed.  
Raiden could see that his grip on the steering wheel was so 
tight, the knuckles were white.

	"We can't count on that,"  Clark said, worry lines 
etched in his face.

	"You trust her, don't you?"  Raiden asked.

	He wanted to scream yes, to shout to the world that he 
trusted Makoto more than anyone else...but uncertainty 
crept in from the corners of his mind.

	It made what was once so clear as vague and fuzzy as 
a foggy night.  He'd been feeling unbalanced lately, and 
his...indiscretion had been the culmination of shaky 
judgment.

	 [It would have happened sooner or later.]  A voice 
spoke from within.

	Clark blinked, and realized that Raiden was waiting 
for a reply.

	"I *want* to,"  he said.  But I'm afraid, he thought.  
"I'm just not sure whether or not my opinion will change 
anything."

	 [Ah, self-pity *and* a feeling of futility.  We really 
*must* talk sometime when things quiet down somewhat.]  
Parias's voice commented.  Clark had a sudden feeling of 
dread.

 	"We have to keep our hopes up," Raiden said, totally 
unaware of the internal dialogue.  "Best to assume the best, 
until we know the worst."

 	"I think that if they were dead, the Dark Kingdom 
would already be striking at us,"  Isis pointed out.  "They'd 
be here to finish up the job and clear away their enemies."

 	"Maybe,"  Clark allowed.  "But if they're alive, why 
aren't they back yet?"

 	"I expect that the fighting is still going on,"  Raiden 
replied.  "It's not like they were able to go straight to Rei to 
save her, most likely.  The Dark Kingdom is pretty big."

 	"True,"  Clark agreed, somewhat less shakily.  He 
prayed that Makoto was still alive.
   
 	[On that, we both agree.]  Parias said.

*********  

	"Aries, I think blowing up the entire school would be 
overdoing it," Pisces said.

	"It also wouldn't take the useful captives alive," 
Taurus said.  "Best to just wait until they all go to bed, then 
strike.  Minimal opposition, and we know from the records 
where they all will be sleeping."

	"If we wait too long, they will all go to ground," Aries 
said.  "We need to strike now before they realize the Sailors 
are not coming back."  He looked at Pisces.  "Are you 
SURE they aren't?"

	"The spirits indicate they no longer exist.  And my 
spirits are rarely wrong."

	"This could be a trap," Aries said.  "Aquarius, what do 
you think?"

	Aquarius frowned.  "I am not sure.  Strategy has never 
been my strength.  But I think it best to seize this window 
of opportunity while we can."

	Aries nodded.  "Exactly."  He rose.  "Let's move out, 
then.  Agent S indicates that the TDDC is having a club 
meeting; I believe we will find both of our main targets 
there.  Aquarius, you are our strongest fighter right now.  
You will have to keep an eye out for their Idol Angel and 
neutralize her before she can start singing.  Taurus, you will 
command the Star Guard.  Pisces, your job is to keep an 
eye out for anyone else showing up or any spirits trying to 
carry messages away.  I will take out their leaders and try 
to capture Ichiwara and Hibino if possible.  Any 
questions?"

	"What is the plan if the Senshi show up?" Aquarius 
asked.

	"We get the hell out with the Star Guard. Withdraw to 
the central plaza, and then we circle out."  Aries said.  
"Taurus is at Nadir, and the rest of us aren't much above it 
except for you.  We can't afford a major fight."

	Aquarius nodded.  "Let's assemble the troops then." 

*********

	
	Aurora dismissed her armor; it would return when she 
needed it, but she would be safe with Jadeite, she was sure.  
She sat down on the bed.  "I think Hematite wants your 
position," she said to Jadeite.

	He stretched, then began taking off his uniform.  "I'm 
sure he does.  But as they say, keep your friends close and 
your enemies closer."

	"I don't trust Amazonite either," Aurora said, laying 
back on the bed and stretching.  

	"You are mistaken," Jadeite said.  "I would not rely on 
her for too much good sense, but so far as being worthy of 
trust, you can trust her as far as any Youma.  She can be 
relied on to obey and to do things as best she can."

	Aurora sat up and frowned.  "And I think that fool 
Tethys wants you for herself."

	Having finished taking off his uniform, Jadeite came 
over and sat down beside her, taking her hand.  "I have 
eyes for none but you, my love.  She is not half so lovely as 
you, nor half so magnificent."  He kissed her gently.  "I 
have redeemed you out of the slavery of the Senshi; I did 
not do this to cast you away again."

	Aurora blushed slightly. "You're such a flatterer.  And 
yes, I know, I am grateful.  I just...I worry."

	"Be patient with her.  She is largely a loser and a 
weakling, no threat to you.  You are the one I love.  But she 
has done us a great service by delivering the Senshi into 
our hands, so please do not cast your anger towards her.  
She will give up once she realizes she is wasting her time."  
He leaned closer to her, putting his arms around her.

	"It has been so long," she whispered.

	"Too long.  But the long wait is over."

	"Show me your love," she whispered.

	Much later, after they had finished their demonstration 
of love, there was a knock at the door.  "Sir, I am sorry to 
interrupt, but the review of the troops you ordered is about 
to start," Magnetite said through the door.

	"Thank you, Magnetite," Jadeite said.  "Have them 
wait for us."

	"Of course, sir," Magnetite said.  "Would you like me 
to set up the sauna for you for later?"

	"We have a sauna?" Jadeite asked in surprise.

	"These old bones need the warmth," Magnetite said.  
"But I expect you'll enjoy it just as much."

	"But where does the energy for it come from?" Jadeite 
asked.

	"I've been confiscating coal from the mortals, sir.  
Sapphire finds it quite useful also.  Fascinating stuff.  
Apparently, the humans make it by highly compacting dead 
animals and plants into little black chunks which resemble 
rock.  Then they burn it to get energy.  Unfortunately, the 
energy is no longer suitable for sustaining life, but it is very 
useful for producing heat."

	"There's all sorts of resources which haven't been 
exploited here yet," Aurora said as she hastily got dressed.  
Jadeite was doing likewise.  "If we weren't about to 
conquer the Earth and leave, I'd be starting a lot of 
projects."

	  "I suppose moving the sauna will be difficult," 
Magnetite said, frowning.  "Well, I'll send Tethys to set it 
up.  She should have had a nice nap by now."

	"Make sure she does it right," Aurora said.

	"Oh, Tethys, she's a good girl.  She'll do a good job," 
Magnetite said.

	"You always think everyone will do a good job, 
Magnetite," Jadeite said.

	"You have to look on the bright side, or go mad, my 
lord," Magnetite said.

	"True," Jadeite said, finishing getting dressed as 
Aurora summoned her armor.  "Let's go."

***********	

	Daichi paced back and forth nervously.  He looked up 
at the clock.  Eight o'clock.  Time to get started.  "I've 
called everyone together, because we have to go onto alert.  
There is a very strong chance of Youma assault over the 
next forty eight hours.  We're talking something on the 
level of the Gibberling assault several months ago."

	"Shouldn't we tell the government about this?" Eiko 
Kusanagi asked.  

	"The government has been informed," Sensei 
Udaigaku said.  "Unfortunately, we can't count on them to 
keep Tsunami safe.  The JSDF and the police are too small 
and Tokyo is too big.  And they may not take us seriously 
until too late."

	"Yuu, have you finished drawing up the duty roster?" 
Daichi asked.  He prayed Yuu hadn't gotten distracted 
working on making more music videos or subtitling 
episodes of Family Guy again.

	Yuu got up, handed half the stack to Hikaru, and they 
began passing out copies of it.

	"We'll have five-teams patrolling around the clock.  
Sensei will arrange 'sick leave' for those who have to skip 
class," Daichi said.  "Ideally, nothing will happen, but we'll 
be ready if it does."

	"Where is Hime-chan?" Manami asked.  

	"She's conducting an investigation," Daichi said.  
"Alright, this is what we have to do..."

********

	Magnetite made his way along, following his natural 
instincts; he could find anything he'd ever touched, and he 
made sure to touch everyone who worked for him.  It 
looked like Tethys had decided to go wandering around 
instead of resting like he told her.  

	Perhaps I should just set it up myself, and let her have 
her privacy, he thought.  She's probably visiting old friends 
and so on.  And, this way, I can relax in it for a little while.

	He nodded to himself.  Yes, some nice warmth would 
be very good right now.

********

	"Well, I can't really control it," Yumeni said.  "I just 
have these dreams."  She looked at Augur, then petted him.  
"What a nice cat."

	Augur purred happily and climbed into her lap.

	"Like Ryo," Steven said.  "I seem to be the only one of 
us with any control."

	"Well, the present is always present," Umino said.  
"You don't have to reach for it, so to speak."

	Naru frowned.  "I wish I had the Star Orb.  It could 
probably help us find out what happened."

	"Maybe the Sacred Fire will show Grandfather Hino 
something if we ask him to try," Umino said.

	Go woke up from his nap.  "Still arguing?"

	"Yes, no thanks to you," Benten snapped.

	Yumeni stared at them; all of this was a shock to her, 
though it matched up with so many things she'd dreamed.

	"Perhaps Go can use his amazing powers of sleeping 
all the time to help Yumeni fall asleep and have a vision of 
what happened," Futsu-Nushi no Kami said harshly.

	"Hmm, not an entirely bad idea," Cassandra said.

	"What are you thinking?" Naru asked.

	"We possess a time staff, a Pluto, the Star Princess, 
and three people with powers over time," Cassandra said.  
"Surely we can figure out a way to pool your powers and 
enable you all to find out what happened to the Sailors, 
what is happening now, and what will happen in the future 
as a result."

	"How?" Augur asked.  "I'm not aware of any such 
rite."

	"I don't know," Cassandra said.  "But the Senshi can 
share their strength just by joining hands.  If Augur and I 
assume human form, and join a circle of the five of you, 
together, we may be able to pool our strength enough to 
find out what we want to know."

	"Six," Umino said.  "I've got some of the Star Power 
in me now too."

	"Maybe we should all join hands," Artemis said.

	"Some of us need to stay on watch," Augur said.  "So 
that we aren't all gazing into hell dimensions of nothingness 
or whatever if something nasty shows up."

	"Or the phone rings," Go said.

	"Or the phone rings," Cassandra said. 

	"Right," Futsu-Nushi no Kami said, leaping onto the 
windowsill.  "I will watch the window and the yard.  Go 
and Benten, guard the door.  Luna, monitor the ritual.  
Artemis, keep your senses alert for anyone starting to 
teleport in.  Hermes, go get us some snacks.  Pokota, try to 
not get stepped on."   

	Pokota snorted.  Hermes grumbled and left.  The cats 
went into position while Naru, Himeko, Umino, Ryo, 
Steven, Yumeni, Cassandra, and Augur formed a circle, 
holding hands.  They closed their eyes, and Cassandra said, 
"Now, reach inside yourself and find your power."

	Yumeni closed her eyes and tried to reach down inside 
herself.  There was something...a light.  She could feel it 
pulse faintly, so she plunged deeper, trying to find the heart 
of it.  And as she did so, she saw things...

******** 
		
	"It's too risky," Vulcan said.  "They may not be hostile 
to humanity actively, but they are often not very friendly, 
either."

	"We must take the risk," Astra said, then paused for a 
sip of her wine.  "I have seen it.  They will be needed.  The 
Time Tunnel will need them.  This will not be half as 
dangerous as some things we've done."

	"For some values of dangerous," Vulcan protested.  
"Metallia, you must talk some sense into them."

	Metallia brushed her red hair out of her eyes.  "We 
will need them.  Without them, the Time Tunnel will not be 
possible.  And Astra has shown us why we need that."

	"I agree with Astra," Serenity said, gazing up at the 
night sky.  They sat in the gardens of Endymion's new 
palace, and the moon and the stars were shining down 
brightly on them.  "If we approach them peaceably, I'm 
sure they will be reasonable."

	"Let us make the attempt," Endymion said.  "The 
Shield, the Tunnel, and no doubt other projects will need 
someone to watch over them.  And I trust Astra's 
judgement."

	Astra smiled.  "Thank you, Endymion."

	"Alright then," Vulcan said. "Let us see what can be 
attempted."

*********** 

	The cavern was vast, its ceiling arching up out of 
sight, with what looked like stars far overhead.  But surely 
they couldn't be, Vulcan thought.  Not this deep 
underground.  They had spent three days descending into 
the bowels of the Earth, in search of its Tree of Life, said to 
be tended by the Fates.

	Yggsdrasil was certainly impressive in size, an oak 
tree the size of a mountain. Four rivers flowed from springs 
between its roots, flowing off across the cavern.  The roots 
were big enough to build a small house on them, in some 
cases.  

	And by one of the springs, three women sat around a 
great pot.  One of them was old, with long flowing white 
hair, clad in green robes. One of them was middling in age, 
an ashen blonde, clad in yellow. And the third was young, a 
girl on the cusp of adulthood, clad in purple.  "So, you 
would ask us to grant our powers to mere mortals, would 
you?" the old woman asked.

	"He is afraid of the results," the middling woman said, 
pointing at Vulcan.

	"Do not fear," the purple-clad child said.  "They will 
serve Astra and the Five Kingdoms well."

	The old woman glared at the child.  "You're doing that 
annoying thing where you foresee what we're going to 
decide and act like we already have again."

	"You would argue with the rest of us until the stars 
went out if I didn't."

	"Now, now," the yellow-clad woman said.  "Let's not 
fight.  We are sisters."

	"Alright, we'll do it," the old woman said.

	"Thank you," Astra said.

	"Don't thank us so quickly," the old woman said.  
"They won't just be your flunkies.  They will work to lead 
the world to its destiny.  Some of which you may not like."

	"What must be, will be," the middle woman said.  
"They will guide your dynasty, Astra, and guard the time 
tunnel and the shield, until all three things pass away."

	"They will endure unaging through the ages, but will 
have to be linked to a mortal at all times," the youngest 
said.  "And that being will possess a portion of their power, 
as his reward for the burden of being their anchor."  She 
joined hands with her sisters.  "Are you ready?" she asked.

	"Are you sure this is what we must do?" the eldest 
asked the youngest.

	"Can't you feel it?" the middling one asked.

	"No, for I see what was, not what is or what may be," 
the eldest replied.

	"It must be done," the youngest said.  "Let us begin."

**********

	There was a feeling of the passage of much time, and 
Yumeni then saw a vision of a great dark chamber.  A 
whirling portal opened, and the Senshi poured out of it, 
surrounded by Youma.

	"Welcome, Senshi!" Jadeite cackled.  "How nice of 
you to drop in."

 	The Senshi instinctively took up a circle around Sailor 
Moon and Tuxedo Kamen.  The Youma and droids didn't 
seem eager to close with them, but none of them, save 
Pluto, could ever remember seeing so many in one place.
They came in all shapes, sizes and colors.  Most of them
appeared human, and not all of them were in good shape, 
but there were enough to give even Uranus and Jupiter 
pause.

 	"Where's Sailor Mars, Jadeite?" Sailor Moon asked.

 	"Why, she's right here," Jadeite said, extending a hand 
to the shadows behind him.

 	Rei stepped out of the shadows, and the Senshi all 
gasped on seeing her.  The Armor of Mars covered her, but 
it had changed in shape and color into a form-fitting pitch 
black collection of scales and leather.  Shadows seeped out 
of every joint and surrounded her in a nimbus of darkness.  
No tiara graced her head, but instead the sigil of Mars 
glowed there with a black flame.  In her hands she held the 
Hammer of Vulcan, which also had darkened ominously.

 	"May I present my Queen, Aurora," Jadeite said.

 	"Rei-chan!" Sailor Moon screamed.

 	Aurora smirked and raised the hammer high.  
"Goodbye, Sailor Moon," she said.

 	And brought the hammer down.

	There was a huge crackling vortex of energy, which 
swallowed the Senshi.  And then they were gone.

*********
 
	For just a moment, Steven could feel his senses 
expanding, rushing outwards, to encompass the entire solar 
system.  Information, an endless tide of data, rushed into 
his mind.  

	He could not handle it for long, and he felt his senses 
desperately shutting down to defend him.  But in all that, he 
was sure of one thing.

	The Senshi no longer existed in the Present.  Or if they 
did, they'd gone beyond the boundaries of his perceptions.  
They were not in this world.

********* 

	It filled his sight, an endless city under a dark sky, a 
crushing oppressive metropolis, ruled from a great black 
castle at its heart.  Ryo stared into the face of the future.

	Among the gray and black bleakness of what was to 
come, he could make out, as he gazed down from above, 
tiny pinpricks of color.  The Senshi, banished to the future 
that now would come to pass.

	Humanity were slaves and food now, chained to serve 
the Youma all their days.  Ryo shivered at the thought.  
This couldn't be the future.  He didn't want it to be.

	He closed his eyes, but he could still see it.  He didn't 
want to see it.  Nothing had ever been able to change one of 
his visions, but he wanted to, desperately.

	There has to be something, he thought.  There has to 
be some HOPE!

	For a moment, his vision zoomed in on the Sailors.  
They were alive, not dead, and might yet return.  They were 
the hope that this future would not come to pass.  

	But what about us?, he asked the universe. 

	His vision shifted, and now he saw the Zodiac, 
gathering for some great rite in their hall.  

	The vision was brief, but he understood.  The Sailors 
would have to get back under their own power.  The Zodiac 
was left for them to deal with, for now.

	At least they don't have the Star Orb, he thought.

**********

	Jadeite stood on a balcony with an arm around Aurora, 
gazing down at the troops trying to form into formations for 
a parade.  Amazonite was running around, yelling at those 
who were sloppy.  "You did well, my love," he said to 
Aurora.

	She smiled at him.  "Together, our power is..."

	And then a runner came up.  "Sir, we have a message 
from Marcasite."

	"What is it?" Jadeite asked the orange-skinned lad.  

	"Sir, we have a message from the Zodiac that 
renegades among their ranks are launching an attack on the 
Dark Kingdom, some time..."

	There was a distant explosion.

	"Today," he finished.

	Jadeite snarled.  "I expect they think they can crush us 
now that the Senshi are gone.  Go to Marcasite.  Tell him to 
gather his forces.  We will take their precious Star Princess 
once we butcher those who are attacking us now.  Without 
her, they cannot come into their full power."

	The Youma saluted.  "Yes, sir!"  He ran off.

	"Come with me, my love," Jadeite said.  "We have 
work to do."

**********

	Hudson frowned.  He definitely didn't like what they 
were about to do.  They were just a bunch of kids who 
meant well.  The Zodiac seemed to be spending all its 
energy on being stupid lately, and this was just the capstone 
of that.

	I wish the Star Princess had stayed lost, he thought.  
He glanced over at Izuko and Thomas and Wang.  None of 
them looked too happy about this either.  But what choice 
did they have?  Once you joined the Star Guard, you were 
in it for life.  Your fate was set.

	"Alright, people," Taurus said.  "Squads A and B, 
you're going with me down into the weapons lockers and to 
knock out their AI.  Squad C and D, you'll be backing up 
the other Zodiac members; Pisces will give you your 
orders.  They're just a bunch of stupid kids, so set your 
weapons to stun.  We're out to capture these ones."  He 
passed a set of pictures around.  "Five hundred thousand 
yen bonus to whoever captures any of them."

	"Sweet!" Andrew proclaimed.  That was his favorite 
phrase; the others were sick of him responding to 
everything with it.

	Taurus said, "Alright, form into squads.  We're going 
to circle right to our targets.  Be ready."

	The men formed into squads, each forming up on one 
of the Zodiac wheels on the floor of the huge chamber they 
were in.  Pisces, Aquarius, and Aries moved to stand on the 
circles with squads C and D.  Taurus joined squad A.  

	Then he waved his arm and chanted and the circles 
flared to life.  Energy rose up around them in a cylinder, 
and when it cleared, squads C and D were in a large 
audiovisual classroom with a large number of teenagers 
studying photocopied handouts.

	"Fire!" Pisces commanded.  Dozens of stunrays swept 
across the room.  

	Aries gestured and flames roared up around Daichi, 
Hikaru, and Yuu, trapping them by the chalkboard.  
Aquarius swept the room with her gaze, watching for the 
Idol Angel, and hoped the Idol Angel wasn't down 
guarding the armory or something.  She did spy Yuki, 
however.  "There she is, Aries!  It's the Ichiwara girl!"

	 "Grandfather, go!" a blue-haired girl shouted, and 
then she leapt at Aries, kicking him in the face and sending 
him tumbling.  She then turned to leap at Aquarius, who 
barely ducked under her assault.

	Aquarius followed up with a blast of water at the girl, 
who grabbed an unfortunate Star Guard to use as a shield.  
Aquarius began chasing the girl, wondering who she was; 
she hadn't been in any of the intel reports.

	The old man ran out the door, shouting, "Horus!  We 
need any help you can give us!"

	The club officers started to escape, but Aries managed 
to get back up and trap them again.  "Pisces, can your 
spirits tell us where the Idol Angel is?"

	Pisces began to chant.  Students were being mowed 
down by stunrays in droves, while others fled.  Hudson 
gritted his teeth and tried to tell himself this was necessary.  
Aries glanced over at Aquarius, who was still trying to get 
the blue haired girl.  He got out his communicator and 
called Taurus.  "Taurus, have you secured the armory?"

	"We're about to blow through a wall to bypass some of 
the defenses.  The lab's got some good ones," Taurus said.

	"Alright.  I guess..."

	And then a man in armor with a sword came in the 
door, followed by a green-haired man and a black cat with 
a white patch like a ringed planet on her forehead.  
"Zodiac!  Begone!  This school is under our protection!" 
the man announced.

	It wasn't the White Knight; none of the Zodiac were 
sure who this guy was, just that he had recently been seen 
with the Senshi.  Aries shouted, "Guardsmen!  Mow them 
down!"

	A barrage of stun beams from their Capricorn-
manufactured stun guns homed in on the trio.  The white-
armored man moved to cover the other man, and swept his 
sword about.  Many of the bolts reflected back at the Star 
Guard, and most of the rest struck his armor harmlessly.  
Hudson took a shot in the chest and fell down; Izuko 
managed to dodge her own reflected shot.  The cat, on the 
other hand, got sniped by a lucky shot and passed out.  The 
green-haired man picked the cat up angrily, then ran out of 
the room. 

	Aries assessed the situation.  Most of the club was out 
of action, either fled out the doors and windows or else 
unconscious.  The Idol Angel had yet to appear.  "Taurus, 
are you in?"

	"We're in," he said.

	"Alright.  Pisces, have you spotted the Idol Angel?"

	"She's outside, and approaching," Pisces said.  "Likely 
someone who escaped out a window turned into her."

	The man in the armor turned and slashed at the flames 
around the club officers.  They parted before him, and he 
grabbed the closest one, Hikaru.  "Kobayashi, Koishikawa, 
come over here."

	"Teleport!  NOW!" Aries shouted.

	The Star Guard and Zodiac faded out, taking Daichi 
and Yuu and most of the club with them, right as Idol 
Angel Mami ran in.  They soon found themselves back at 
their base.

	Taurus showed up with his forces shortly thereafter.  
"I'd have to say this was a grand success."

	"A fair success," Aries said.  "The main force of the 
club is now crippled, but some of our targets got away.  
Still, we have half their leadership, and the suspiciously 
knowledgeable Ichiwara Yuki.  Alright, men.  Good job.  
Let's move our prisoners to the brig, and then you can all 
stand down."

	Kidnapping kids, Hudson thought as he helped pick up 
one boy.  What have we come to?

*********
	
	Sagittarius snapped off another arrow shot, which 
plunged deep into a fanged Youma's throat.  It collapsed, 
spurting a blue ichor.  He trampled two more, then said to 
Cancer, who was mounted on his back, "Which way?"

	"This way," Cancer said after waving a wand in the air 
to check.  They rushed out of the room and down another 
tunnel.  She wished Capricorn's device had been able to 
sense the Orb's location more accurately.

	They came to a great door, which had been magically 
sealed.  Virgo studied it, then pointed to one spot.  "Shoot 
there, Sagittarius."  He did so, and the door frame cracked.  
He then reared back and kicked it in with his hooves.

	Beyond was a huge throne room, stuffed full of 
Youma.  A staff tipped with a glowing orb floated in front 
of the throne, Beryl's staff, left behind when she died 
fighting Sailor Moon two years ago.  That orb was their 
goal.

	"Capricorn, give us a street sweeper," Leo 
commanded, then pointed at the Youma.  "FLEE!" he 
ordered them.  The weak minded fled, but many remained.  
Capricorn opened up with a flamethrower, driving back the 
front ranks of the Youma.  The rest opened fire on the 
Zodiac, who formed a wedge and headed for the staff.

	Then another door opened, and Jadeite charged in, 
along with Aurora, Amazonite, Anthracite, and Hematite.  
"Intruders from Earth," Jadeite said.  "You will pay the 
price for invading our territory."

	"Fall back!" Leo shouted, then whispered to Gemini-C 
and Gemini-P, "Once we draw them off, teleport to the 
staff, and take it."

	They nodded, and the group began to backpedal.  

	Aurora asked, "Shall I..."

	"No, I want to keep them.  Anthracite, Hematite, 
Amazonite, lead your men forward.  Aurora and I will 
remain in reserve to see if the rest of their little friends are 
coming," Jadeite said.

	Anthracite moved to engage Leo, while Hematite took 
cover and began to snipe at Sagittarius with bursts of black 
lightning.  Amazonite charged Capricorn, hoping he would 
give her a good fight.  And a wave of misshapen Youma 
and droids moved with them.

	The Zodiac slowly fell back before the onslaught.  
Capricorn, who was more inventor than warrior fell back 
before Amazonite's swift, accurate spear thrusts and strikes.  
He was getting battered heavily, unable to bring his own 
weaponry to bear.

	Leo battled sword-to-sword against Anthracite.  He 
could feel Anthracite trying to fill him with terror, but he 
fought back with his own aura of majesty.  They proved 
fairly evenly matched in that regard.  Unfortunately, while 
Leo was stronger, Anthracite was the more skillful 
swordsman, and he soon found himself starting to get 
slashed up.

	Hematite, on the other hand, soon found himself 
hiding behind Beryl's throne, much to his embarrassment. 
Sagittarius was viciously accurate, shooting an arrow into 
Hematite's knee with the first shot and nearly crippling his 
other knee with a second.  Youma rushed at Cancer, trying 
to aid their master, but ran away screaming when she 
glared at them.  

	Virgo fought several Youma with her staff, striking at 
pressure points on their bodies, but as those went down, 
more rushed forward to fill the gap.  She could see Aurora 
watching her, and she wondered why.  That looks like 
Mars, Virgo thought.  But surely she wouldn't...

	And then she remembered how Princess Aurora had 
been engaged to Jadeite.  Damnation, Virgo thought.  Rid 
of one crazed Mars only to be saddled with another.

	And then Marcasite charged them from their rear, 
lunging in and giving Virgo a nasty arm wound.  "There is 
no way out," he announced, smiling.  

	There was a flash, and the Gemini appeared next to 
Beryl's staff.  They grabbed it even as Jadeite and Aurora 
turned.  Before they could teleport, Aurora shouted, 
"FLAME TYPHOON!" and unleashed a huge whirlwind of 
fire at them.  Gemini-P and C swung the staff around, and it 
flared to life.  The staff burned away, leaving only the orb, 
whose light sent Droids fleeing and Youma reeling.  The 
light blocked most of the Flame Typhoon, although they 
both still got burnt a little.

	Hematite yelped and dove away from Beryl's throne, 
which broke apart into pieces as the flame typhoon hit it.  
He took a shot from Sagittarius through his left hand, 
disabling it, then rolled clear.

	Gemini-C shouted, "STAR ORB!  TAKE US TO THE 
ASCENDED ONE!!!"
	
	"NO!" Aurora shouted, holding up her hammer.

	Unfortunately for her, she wasn't fast enough, and the 
Zodiac teleported away. 

	They appeared in the Great Hall of the Zodiac, where 
the rest of the Zodiac had gathered.  Leo cursed deep inside 
and prepared himself for a fight.  We shouldn't have 
listened to Polly, he thought.  But if we hadn't...

	Gemini-C handed the Star Orb to Scorpio.  "Ascended 
One, our raid was a success.  All we require is the Star 
Princess, and then, finally, the Zodiac can achieve its full 
potential."

	"You have all done well," Scorpio said solemnly.  
"We will strike, and strike NOW.  The Senshi are gone, but 
we cannot assume they will stay gone.  The 
Transdimensional Defense Club has been eliminated as 
well."  She shook her head, smirking.  "Some of them may 
make good Star Guard, one day, once properly re-
educated."

	Leo waited tensely.  Gemini-C had clearly sold them 
out.  Why wasn't Scorpio doing anything?  Did she think 
they would somehow not realize this?  But what could he 
do if she had the Star Orb?

	"What about the prisoners?" Taurus asked.  "Shouldn't 
we see what they might tell us?"

	"We know enough without them," Scorpio said.  "We 
will secure the Princess.  We can interrogate them at our 
leisure afterwards.  Should the Senshi return from the Dark 
Kingdom, then we can use that information against them.  
But for now...we strike!"

	Leo watched Scorpio carefully.  She was in a hurry for 
some reason.  But why?  Why was she suddenly being so 
hasty?  What did she know that he did not?

*********
	
	The sound of explosions woke Yuuichiro.  Something 
was going on...maybe the Senshi were fighting nearby.  
The Senshi.  They could help him find Rei.  He had his 
energy back.  He could fight.  He had to.  He had to do 
something.

	I can't believe I've just been sitting around, he thought.  
Rei needs me, and I've been sitting on my ass.  He looked 
around and wondered where Theresa was.  If I go, she 
won't find me, he thought.  But Rei...

	He had to go.  Theresa seemed to be able to take care 
of herself, though he owed her a favor now, but Rei...She 
needed him.  He could feel it.  Feel her now.  Not very 
well, but something...He could feel something, tugging at 
him.  It had to be Rei.  What else could it be?

	He headed for the sound of the fighting, but the 
fighting died away before he reached it.  But the tugging 
persisted, so he followed its lead, hoping he would be 
strong enough for Rei when he found her.  

*********

	"The Three," Cassandra said.  "Not much was known 
of them by us, the Venusian cats.  Did you remember 
anything of them, Naru?"

	"I saw them talking to Mother once," Naru said.  "And 
I remember studying about them a little.  No one was sure 
exactly what they were, just that they watched over the 
Great Shield with Metallia, and the Time Tunnel with 
Pluto.  And had time related powers."  She frowned.  
"Which they don't seem to have used much to help us avoid 
being destroyed."

	"I expect they had the whole Setsuna 'I can't do 
anything, because X, Y, and Z has to happen to produce 
some future event which won't help us right now thing' 
going on," Himeko said.  "I hope I don't end up like that."

	"Sometimes," Augur said, "Sacrifices have to be made 
in the short term for a long term good.  Some may suffer 
for the good of the greater number."  His voice was 
somewhat sad.

	Cassandra nodded.  "Some choices are very hard, 
especially when you can know the consequences more 
surely."

	Umino said, "Well, we have a problem.  We don't 
have enough forces to beat the Zodiac without the Star Orb.  
We don't have enough forces to get it from the Dark 
Kingdom, as it seems likely they defeated the Senshi, who 
outnumber us and were better trained.  Unless Ryo and 
Steven and Yumeni can turn into super-powered warriors 
now, anyway."

	Steven said, "No, but I do have the Hackmaster sword, 
at least.  And Ryo has his armor, and Yumeni can just go 
home, as I expect they don't know she's a friend of ours."

	Ryo said, "Hey, there's a thought.  Although I suppose 
Naru and Umino and Himeko probably can't muster enough 
strength to teleport us all..."

	"Couldn't we just get home the normal way?" Steven 
asked.

	"Your home," Ryo said.  "We go to say, England. Or 
the USA.  They won't know to look for us there, and we 
can lay low until the Senshi make it back."  He frowned 
and shook a little.  "Or it becomes clear they won't, in 
which case maybe we can get help from the Venusian cats 
or Dia or something."

	"Dia!  I'm sure she'd take us in.  And try to have sex 
with all of us, but..." Steven said.  And Gwen, he thought.  
She'll help.  "Himeko, you'd have to teleport there and ask 
her."

	Himeko said, "Alright.  I'll go as soon as we hear from 
Maguson-sensei."

	"We can't wait," Ryo said.  "And I'm sure Daichi is 
going to be fine."

	"How can you be sure?" she asked urgently.

	"The Zodiac has no reason to care about him," Ryo 
said.  "I promise we won't leave Tokyo without finding out 
if he's okay."

	"Alright," Himeko said.  "Cassandra, Pokota, come 
with me."

	They both ran over to her as she transformed.  The 
Younger Pluto picked them up.  "I will be back as fast as 
possible."

	Ryo had a sudden flash, and for a moment, his feeling 
of gloom subsided.  "Something good is going to happen," 
he said.  "I just saw you teleporting in, looking very 
happy."

	"Great," she said hopefully.  "See you all soon."  And 
then she vanished.

	"Luna, we need to get Maguson-sensei a 
communicator," Naru said.

	"I thought I gave him one," Luna said.  "He may have 
forgotten it, though."

	"Let me try calling him, then," Naru said.  "If I can 
figure out where mine is, anyway..."

********* 

	Dammit, he's lost himself again, Tethys thought.  
After all this effort I made to find an energy crystal that 
even he could use, and this analysis lens so I could study 
him and everything.  

	She studied the cave, then found his footprints and 
began following them.  It was then that she got a very bad 
feeling, just for a moment.  

	Warily, she spun in a circle, but she was alone.  
Frowning, she opened her senses, trying to feel any 
intruders, but nothing was there.  Something had gone 
wrong.  But what?

	The feeling faded and she dismissed her worries.  Let's 
see, he must have gone this way, she thought, and began 
following the trail again.

*********

	"Poor Horus," Noriko said, staring at the wreckage of 
the machines.

	"He will be quite cranky when I restore him from 
backups," Udaigaku-sensei said, sighing.  "Once I build 
something able to hold him properly."

	"I should have been faster," Idol Angel Mami said.

	"Damn Zodiac," Hikaru said.  "They're going to 
PAY."

	"We need to get you somewhere safe, in case they 
come back," Parias said.  "Why don't you come and stay 
with Tomoe-sensei a while?  I'm sure he'd be glad to put 
you up."

	"I don't suppose you have a secret arsenal of really 
horrible weapons, do you?" Hikaru asked.  "I have to wreak 
bloody vengeance."

	"I'm sure Daichi will be alright, 'karu-chan," Noriko 
said.  "They weren't shooting to kill."

	"We got our asses kicked!" Hikaru said.  "And where 
were the Senshi during all this?"

	"Off trying to rescue Sailor Mars from the Dark 
Kingdom," Parias said sharply. "They would have come if 
they could."

	"And Himeko!  Not even here to protect her 
boyfriend!  What use is being one of the Senshi if you can't 
even protect your boyfriend?"

	Parias winced.  "She would have come, if she could."

	"Hmph."

	"Well, weapons...I have a small concealed cache left," 
Sensei said.  "Most of them are now gone, unfortunately."

	"Did you ever finish developing the ninja suit?" 
Noriko asked.

	"Well, it hasn't been properly tested," Udaigaku-sensei 
said.  "Except for the grenades and the goggles.  And it's a 
'scouting' suit, not a ninja suit."

	"I'll take it," Hikaru said.  "And anything else you can 
give me."

	"Hibino-san, it might be wise if you..."

	"All I have left of the club which Daichi put in my 
charge is myself, a magical idol singer, Noriko, and Sensei.  
Noriko seems to have gotten super-powers somewhere.  
Mami has powers too.  Sensei is a super-genius.  Whereas, 
all I can contribute is money, a camera, and the willingness 
to do whatever I have to in order to save Daichi.  None of 
which will stop monsters.  So I'll take any chances I have 
to.  Get me the suit, Sensei.  This is what it was made for."

	Sensei nodded.  "I'll go and..."

	Parias began to buzz.  He fumbled around, and 
eventually found a small metal box, which he flipped open.  
It was Naru.  "Parias!  What's going on at the school?" she 
asked.

	"The Zodiac attacked.  I'm with the Udaigakus and 
Hibino and Idol Angel Mami.  They're all that's left."

	"They caught us by surprise," Hikaru said, leaning 
over his shoulder and talking to the face on the screen in 
the lid of his communicator.  "But I'm going to rescue 
them.  Or die trying."

	"Not with just them, you aren't," Naru said.  "It would 
be suicide.  Come and join us; we're going to fall back to a 
safe base, until the rest of the Senshi get back from the 
future."

	"I can't go hide while Daichi and the rest of the club is 
in danger!  Where's Himeko?  She ought to be here!"

	Naru said, "She's off recruiting more help.  Hibino-
san, please, come and join us.  Together, we'll be stronger 
than apart."  She sighed.  "We hoped you'd all be safe, but 
it looks like nowhere is safe.  You'll be safer with us than 
by yourself, though."

	Hikaru frowned, looked around at her group, then 
nodded.  "Alright.  We have to finish raiding the weapons 
cache, and then we'll be there."

	"Alright.  See you soon."

**********
	
	"We should transform," Naru said.  

	"Save your strength," Augur said.  "If we're going to 
teleport everyone to Venus, it's likely to be exhausting."

	"Are we sure the Zodiac can't drop in on us?" Naru 
asked.  "Catching us by surprise?"

	"They would have to know we're here and 
vulnerable," Umino said.  "Maybe I should transform, just 
in case."

	"I'll put on the stupid battlesuit," Ryo said, getting up.  
"I'll be ready to malfunction as soon as the enemy arrives."

	"We will cover you while you transform," Futsu-
Nushi no Kami said.  "Should the need arise."

	Ryo headed out of the room.  Naru paced tensely.

	Long moments which seemed like hours passed.  And 
then they heard Ryo shout, "The Zodiac!  They're coming!  
They're coming!"

	Umino concentrated, and the power washed over him; 
he transformed into the White Knight.  It felt wonderful.  
Finally, he had enough power to protect Naru-chan when 
she most needed him.  

	Naru's hand went instinctively to her brooch.  
"Odysseus Planet..."  And then Augur leaped at her, 
knocking her brooch away.  "Augur, what are you doing?"

	"The Star Kingdom fell, damning the five kingdoms 
and all the others, because the royal family had become 
lazy weaklings, who partied their way to disaster," Augur 
said.  "The Senshi have failed.  Only the Zodiac can defend 
the Solar System now, and they can't do their jobs while 
you stand in the way."

	"Fool," Futsu-Nushi no Kami said.  "You think you 
can beat us all?"

	"I don't have to," Augur said.

	And then there was a pulse of power.  Naru and the 
White Knight staggered.  And the Zodiac appeared, with 
Scorpio holding the Star Orb high.  "Die," Scorpio said, 
and a wave of purple energy washed over everything in the 
room.  The cats screamed and began to convulse as part of 
their blood turned to poison. Steven screamed and 
collapsed as well.  Naru felt her temperature rise and 
staggered, feeling her heart pound.  The White Knight felt 
sick, but now drew his sword and charged.  

	The powers of the Zodiac rained down on him, all 
empowered by the Star Orb, fire and water, arrows and rays 
of energy.  Leo commanded him to halt and Cancer filled 
him with fear.  But he struggled onwards.  He had to save 
Naru.  He had to.

	And then there was a sudden roar, and Ryo crashed 
into the ranks of the Zodiac in his armored suit.  Taurus 
went down, followed by Aries and both of the Gemini, 
knocked about by the sheer impact.  He crashed through 
their numbers, hit a wall, and tried to come around for 
another pass.  But then Capricorn simply pointed at him 
and his suit went dead and he fell to the ground.

	Meanwhile, Scorpio held the White Knight at bay, 
pouring more and more of her power into blasting him with 
poisonous energies.  But slowly, ever so slowly, he drew 
closer.

	Naru tried to pull herself together, but then she got hit 
by one of Sagittarius' arrows and got a faceful of sleeping 
gas when the bulb on the end shattered on her forehead.  
She staggered and collapsed.  "Augur...I thought...you were 
my friend."

	And then she was unconscious.  Augur winced as he 
looked at her, then trotted over to Leo and handed him her 
broach.  

	Hermes staggered to his feet, then tried to charge at 
Scorpio, only to be swatted aside by Aquarius with a water 
blast.  He thought about irony as he laid and tried to gather 
his strength.

	Only one chance, and it's not much of one, Steven 
thought.  I have to play dead, and hope I can try to do 
something once they relax.

	The White Knight finally collapsed, unable to resist 
the combined power of the Zodiac and the Star Orb.  He 
cried with frustration, as he felt the darkness take him.  I 
failed again, he thought.  I wasn't able to protect Naru-chan.

	"Do you want us to take the cats?" Virgo asked 
Scorpio.  "And the boys?"

	"No," Scorpio said.  "Queen Hecate would likely 
cause us trouble if we slaughtered her subjects.  And the 
boys can do nothing if..."

	"They are manifestations of the Three," Augur said.  
"They might be valuable.  But I agree, best you leave the 
cats."

	Futsu-Nushi no Kami tried to growl at Augur, but 
couldn't muster the strength.

	"Sagittarius.  Ensure the cats will live, but be too weak 
to annoy us.  We will take the..."

	And then there was a flash of light, and forty elves in 
armor appeared with the Younger Pluto.  One of the elves, 
a blue-haired woman stepped in front of the white haired 
female leader of the elves as she was about to speak.  "You 
are not taking them ANYWHERE," she said vehemently.  
"You are not taking anyone!  I'm the last surviving member 
of the Solar Patrol, and I'm putting you ALL UNDER 
ARREST!"  She flashed a badge.

	The white haired woman sighed.  "Gwynnaefael, I 
suspect they no longer acknowledge the Patrol's jurisdiction 
if they even remember it."

	Scorpio decided the boys were not worth a fight, 
especially since the Three might take it poorly.  The last 
conflict between the Zodiac and the Three had gone poorly 
for that Ascended One.  Perhaps the Orb could defeat them, 
but best to save that confrontation for later.  "Arrest this."  
She raised the Orb and the Zodiac, Augur, Naru, and the 
White Knight vanished.

	"Steven!  Steven!  See, I remembered your new 
name!" Gwynnaefael said as she kneeled by him.  "You 
look awful!"

	"Gwen.  You have to save the cats.  They're all dying 
from Scorpio's poisons."  Steven tried to point, but he could 
hardly move his arm.

	Dia said, "We'll save them."  She looked about sadly.  
"I tried to warn Athena that trouble was coming."

	"We had to face it," Ryo mumbled.  "Even if we 
couldn't prevent it."

	Hermes sat up.  "I hate poison."  He stretched, getting 
to his feet.  "At least this one didn't make me throw up."

	The elves fanned out and began picking up the cats.  

	The Younger Pluto went over and picked up Ryo.  
"Dammit.  I didn't foresee this until it was too late.  
Dammit!"

	Gwen pulled out a bottle and began to pour it down 
Steven's throat.  "Drink."

	"What's left of the TDDC and Parias will be here 
soon," Ryo said.  "We're going to need a hell of a plan to 
win this one."

	"The ruling council is still debating what to do about 
Amazonite stirring up all that trouble.  They should get 
around to making a decision in a few years."  Dia sighed.  
"Time flows faster on my estates.  You will all have time to 
rest and recover before we launch a counter-stroke.  And 
we will need to find wherever Derith is hiding.  He will 
want to be part of this."

	Steven could feel himself getting better even as the 
cool fluid, which tasted of strawberries, flowed down his 
throat.  "His dragon buddy could be really handy."

	"Yes, he could.  Can you stand, Steven of Grant?"

	With Gwynnaefael's help, he stood up.  "More or 
less."

	"Good.  We will wait for your friends, and then we go 
back to Avalon, and prepare for your triumphant return."

	Just call me King Arthur, Steven thought.  I've got the 
magic sword, for what good it did me, anyway.

************
		
	Tethys rounded a corner just in time to see Yuuichiro 
face to face with two Youma.  One was tall and bulky, with 
long orange hair and yellow skin; the other was middling in 
build and height, but similar in coloration.  "A human," the 
taller one said.  "We are in luck to find such a handy snack, 
Chrysolite."

	"What's a human doing running around loose?" the 
shorter one said.  "This could be a trap, Agate."

	"Take me to Rei!" Yuuichiro commanded.  "Or I will 
destroy you!"

	Agate began to laugh.  She idly extended and retracted 
her claws.  "With a wooden sword?"

	Tethys decided to watch for now.  If the boy couldn't 
handle these two idiots, he would likely be of no use to her.  
Instead, she simply put on her Examining Lens, and studied 
the three of them.  Agate had fire powers, while Chrysolite 
commanded water.  Not too physically tough; low-grade 
Youmas at best.

	Yuuichiro began to chant and flung two prayer strips, 
which stuck to their foreheads.  They both jumped as if 
they'd gotten a mild shock.  Tethys studied the flow of 
energy.  Interesting, she thought.  His body is naturally well 
suited for the flow of powerful energies, but his soul 
doesn't seem strong enough to produce them.

	Agate peeled the strip off her forehead and ate it.  
"Not entirely useless," she said.  "You'll make a better 
snack than I feared."  She raised her hands.  "Let's see you 
stop this."  She fired a burst of flame.

	He jumped to one side, and the fire blasted the wall 
behind him.  Agate turned, fire sweeping from her hands, 
as he continued to jump and dodge; he was more nimble 
than Tethys had realized.

	Good physical conditioning, Tethys thought.  And he 
knows how to fight.  As compared to Agate, who is an 
idiot.  If he just had some power, he might actually be a 
very strong warrior.  

	"Take me to Rei!" Yuuichiro demanded again.  Then 
he charged at Agate as she paused for breath.

	Chrysolite shrieked and dived to one side, firing a wild 
spray of water at Yuuichiro which missed him.  He leaped 
over a fire blast from Agate and landed on her feet-first, 
then once she was down, he began to slap her face around 
with his sword.

	Chrysolite got up, gathered her courage and jumped at 
him.  He spun, slamming her in the side with his sword and 
redirecting her into a wall while he stomped on Agate's 
face.  

	His power levels were building, Tethys realized.  His 
soul was not normally very strong, but when he got going 
on the subject of Rei...  It was no wonder he was 
pulverizing them.  Still not strong enough to take on a 
Youma leader, but against fools like these...

	Chrysolite turned and began to run.  Yuuichiro 
stomped Agate again, and leaped at her from behind, 
bashing her down with his wooden sword.  Tethys got a 
respectable power reading from it.  Chrysolite shrieked and 
collapsed.

	I need to find him a source of power, Tethys thought.  
Combined with his passion for Rei, yes, he could prove 
very useful.  But where to get the energy...  Well the energy 
she'd collected from vermin hunting would do for a start.

	She emerged from hiding.  "Yuuichiro!  There you 
are!" she said.  "Are you alright?"

	"I thought...I'm sorry," he said.  "I've spent too much 
time feeling sorry for myself.  I want to help Rei, and I 
can't just sit around and wait."

	She nodded.  "I know.  We're going to have to find 
something which will give us enough power to fight for 
her, though.  Jadeite and his generals are much stronger 
than those fools you just fought, or even a fairly normal 
Youma."

	"But what?" he asked, frustrated.  "I've been trying for 
years to get more power to protect her, to make her and 
Hino-sama proud of me, but nothing ever seems to work 
well."

	For a moment, she wished she had Sensei handy.  He 
would know where to find energy suitable for humans.  
And having Noriko wouldn't hurt either.  They could use a 
Golem.  But they weren't here, and useful as they would be, 
she would have to get by without them.  And then she 
smelled an odd smell in the air.  "Is that...smoke?" she 
asked.

	"Yeah," he said.  "Must be from the battle."

	As a general rule, nothing was flammable in the Dark 
Kingdom.  Crystal and rock didn't burn.  But if things were 
burning...that meant energy.  Energy which could be used 
possibly to empower her pawn.  And herself.  

	Yes, this had potential.

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

	"Despite this recent setback," Jadeite said, "Everything 
is going as planned.  It's not as if we had an actual use for 
the Orb.  This simply means we must strike before they are 
ready to use it against us.  My generals, are you ready?"

	"Ready as we'll ever be," Amazonite said.

	"We will have to hurry," Hematite said.  "The Zodiac 
are planning to take the Star Princess' power."

	"Hmm.  Your atonement for your failure earlier, will 
be to ensure they are kept too busy to succeed in that, 
Hematite," Jadeite said.  "As for the rest of you...to your 
stations.  The conquest of Earth begins NOW."

***********
	
	One by one, the Zodiac shuffled into their positions in 
the Great Hall of the Zodiac.  The long awaited Rite of 
Ascension was at hand.  Some of them awaited it with 
anticipation.  Others feared what might come of it.  But all 
knew it was the end of one era, and the beginning of 
another.  Nothing could be the same again, for them, one 
way or another.

**************
Sailor Moon Says:

[We see an empty stage.  For a long time, nothing happens, 
then Jadeite appears with Aurora.]

Jadeite:  Looks like there won't be any Sailor Moon says, 
because THERE IS NO SAILOR MOON.

Aurora:  And good riddance.  [glomps onto Jadeite]  I've 
got my evil little muffin to rule the universe with now.

Jadeite:  I hereby proclaim this series to be named Jadeite 
Z.  And I'll get rid of the Z once I squash the Zodiac.

Aurora:  I think calling it Aurora and Jadeite Z would be 
much better.

Jadeite:  It lacks balance.

Aurora:  [menacingly]  Excuse me, but which one of us has 
an Icon and which one of us spent two years as a hunk of 
jewelry?  [sweetly]  It'll show our love, like Will and 
Grace.

Jadeite:  He's gay and she's a moron.

Aurora:  Like Tristan and Iseult. 

Jadeite:  Murdered and suicided, respectively.

Aurora:  [fervently]  Stop being so picky and tell the 
audience this week's moral!

Jadeite:  Crime _does_ pay.

Aurora:    I thought we decided our moral was 'Aurora is 
very sexy'.  

Jadeite:  [thinking]  Maybe I should have brainwashed 
someone less bossy.

Aurora:  And less psychic.

[She begins to mallet him with Vulcan's hammer as we 
fade to the closing credits...]

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

Closing Credits:

     "My road leads me far away."

     We see Nephrite telling Juno that he must go soon for a 
great conflict is about to begin.

     "Though my heart tells me to stay,"

     We see Princess Serenity clinging to a worried looking 
Endymion.

     "When my duty calls, I must go"

     We see Pluto appearing in the midst of the ballroom at 
the Diamond Gala.

     "'Twixt worlds of fire and worlds of snow."

We cut to a shot of the solar system, with the nine 
planets and the moon lined up from the Sun at the left to 
Pluto at the right, with the Senshi and Prince Endymion 
standing on their planets as shadowy figures.

     "The road I travel will be long"

     We see the White Knight galloping down a Tokyo street 
on horseback.

     "To set things right, to end the wrongs."

     We see Tuxedo Mask tossing a red rose into the barrel 
of a gun, which backfires and explodes.

     "But this message will I send,"

     We see Rei picking up a blue crystal, which starts to 
play back a message.

"Wait for me at Journey's End."

     We see Naru waiting for someone outside a restaurant.

     "Do not forget the love we share"

     We see Princess Serenity and Endymion tearfully 
bidding each other farewell.

     "Though I must leave, my heart will stay."

     We see Naru crying as Nephrite dissolves away in her 
arms.

     "Do not think I ceased to care"

     We see Beryl implanting crystals in the foreheads of the 
four Guardians and cackling maniacally.
                               
"When my duty took me away."

     We see Steven waiting at a restaurant, then sighing as he 
checks his watch.

     "The road I travel will be long"

     We see the Sailors using the Sailor Teleport to travel to 
the ruins of the Moon Kingdom.

     "To set things right, to end the wrongs."

     We see Umino trying to fight a monster in "Tuxedo 
Umino Kamen" mode.

     "But this message will I send,"

We see Luna trying to use a dial only phone.

     "Wait for me at Journey's End."

     We see Umino leap to his feet as Naru comes running 
up the sidewalk to him with Usagi and company.

     "I have only my heart to give"

     We see Haruka and Michiru sharing a quiet moment.

     "For my life is not my own."

     We see the baby Saturn in a crib.

     "It is for others that I must live"

We see Pluto having a frustrating time trying to counsel a 
young girl.

     "But it is for you that I come home."

     We see Mamoru following a trail of smoke to Usagi in 
his kitchen.

     "The road I travel will be long"

     We see Capricorn vanishing through a portal.

     "To set things right, to end the wrongs."

     We see a chamber with stars for a ceiling and a 
horoscope on the floor.  A man stands in grey robes in the 
center and stares down at the horoscope.

     "But this message will I send,"

We see Usagi listening to a message on the phone, her eyes 
getting big.

     "Wait for me at Journey's End."

     We see a closing tableux of the Sailors, Umino, Naru, 
Steven, Tuxedo Mask, and twelve shadowy figures 
standing on a Zodiac wheel.



 
	 
	



Ascendent One:

7 Scorpio     (Oct 23-Nov 21) Air   "I desire"  "incisive"

Rising:
6 Sagittarius (Nov 22-Dec 21) Fire  "I see"     "broad-
minded"
5 Capricorn   (Dec 22-Jan 19) Earth "I use"     "Ambitious"
4 Aquarius    (Jan 20-Feb 18) Water "I know"    
"independant"
3 Pisces      (Feb 19-Mar 20) Air   "I believe" 
"understanding"
2 Aries       (Mar 21-Apr 19) Fire  "I am"      "assertive"

Weakest:  
1 Taurus      (Apr 20-May 20) Earth "I have"    "practical"

Still Declining
2 Gemini      (May 21-Jun 20) Water "I think"   "versatile"
3 Cancer      (Jun 21-Jul 22) Air   "I feel"    "sensitive"
4 Leo         (Jul 23-Aug 22) Fire  "I will"    "dignified"
5 Virgo       (Aug 23-Sep 22) Earth "I analyze" 
"analytical"(duh :)
6 Libra       (Sep 23-Oct 22) Water "I balance" 
"cooperative"

7 = Ascendant One.  Beats up Super Sailor Moon for fun, 
can face down with Eternal Sailor Moon
6 = Go Toe to Toe with Super Sailor Moon.
5 = Super Senshi Strength.
4 = Post Second R Powerups Senshi.  Power level of 
Senshi at start of SMZ..
3 = Post First R Powerups Senshi.
2 = First Season Senshi
1 = Weak Magical Powers  

Capricorn   Male             Controls Machines  Engineer
Aquarius    Female           Controls Water     Scholar
Pisces      Female           Controls Spirits   Priestess
Aries       Male             Controls Fire      Soldier
Taurus      Male             Physically potent  Banker
Gemini      Twins-male       Gestalt to higher  ?
                 -female     form               ?
Cancer      Female           Control emotions   Psychiatrist
Leo         Male             Radiates Majesty   Politician
Virgo       Female           Finds weak points  
Scholar/scientist
Libra       Female           Balances things    Judge
Scorpio     Female           Creates Poisons    Chemist
Sagittarius Male             Healing            Ancient Centaur:)