[FFML] [fanfic][Sailormoon] Moonshadow, chapter two

[The Eternal Lost Lurker]

NOTES:

This was originally released under a different title four years ago.

This is a reworking of the core concept of the series, much like the PGSM
live-action series which inspired it.

Warning: Mature content and strong language.

C&C welcome.

=---------------------------------------------------=


"Hold it RIGHT THERE, you!"

Mina felt a strange rush as she stood on the roof of the museum, facing the
burglar as he attempted to flee the scene of the crime.

An odd one he was, too. Who the heck wore formalwear to commit a felony?

The burglar stared at her for a moment, then bowed, tipping his hat and
smiling graciously. "Good evening, miss. It's a lovely night, don't you
think?"

"Oh yeah, such a great night to rob a museum, huh?" She'd muttered this to
herself, in English; she was surprised to hear the thief respond--also in
perfect English.

"What? You're planning to rob a museum? Why, madame, I'm surprised!"

She stared at him incredulously for a moment, then spluttered, "*I'M* not!
*YOU* are!"

He faked astonishment and hurt. "Why, madame! What terrible accusations you
make! I'm simply enjoying a nighttime stroll--"

"In and out of the ventilation ducts of a museum? Skip it, pal. You went in
there to steal something--now hand it over, or else!"

He sighed. "Or else..." He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a
small black snub-nosed revolver. "what?"

Mina blinked. "Uh...good question."

"You know, I really don't want to have to shoot you," the tuxedo-clad thief
said in a conversational tone. "For one thing, you're far too pretty to mess
up your face with a gunshot wound. For another, I'm not fond of killing
people. And for another, it's really hard to get bullets for this thing here
in Japan, so I hate wasting them if I can avoid it." He shrugged helplessly.
"Now, run along home like a good little girl, and we can skip the bloodshed,
okay?"

Mina stood rooted to the spot, terror gripping her heart. What did she think
she was doing? She was okay in sports, sure, but this was a whole other
matter! He had a gun! She couldn't even fight...

She once again thought about the bracelet Timothy had given her earlier that
day. He'd said not to use it, but...she'd just gotten herself into one hell
of a mess. And if there was even a chance she was what he said she was...

"Well? What's it going to be, miss?"

Mina scowled, thrust her hand into her bag, and pulled out the bracelet. She
slapped it around her wrist, and as she did so, words began to buzz in her
mind. Acting on pure adrenaline, she shouted them...

"MOON POWER! TRANSFORM!"

The rooftop was bathed in brilliant golden light. The thief's eyes widened
behind his silk domino mask.

And seconds later, a completely different young woman stood on the roof
across from him. She seemed taller, more vivacious. Her clothing had
changed--she now wore a short navy blue skirt, matching spike-heeled
sandals, a red-and-white cutoff top with a red bow and a blue naval collar
that left her midriff exposed, elbow-length white gloves, and a red mask
over her face from behind which her large sapphire eyes shone with
intensity. The faintest outline of a glimmering crescent moon was visible on
her forehead.

"Now, drop the gun--or else."



=-------------=



Studio ELL Presents

MOONSHADOW

Adapted from "Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon" by Takeuchi Naoko.

2: Dance with the devil

=-------------=



"I've found you at last, Princess Serenity," the panther rumbled in a deep,
throaty female voice, fangs glistening.

Usagi screamed.

The panther stalked forward slowly, eyes burning brighter than the security
lamps in the park. "Calm down...I'm not going to eat you or anything."

"S-stay back! Somebody help! There's a monster! Big...big...BIG KITTY! It's
gonna eat me HELP!"

"Didn't I just say I wasn't going to eat you, you stupid little bi--" the
panther coughed. "Your Highness?" As if to demonstrate this, the large cat
sat primly on her haunches, front paws stretched out before her.

Usagi blinked. "You're...you'renotgonnaeatme?" she squeaked out in a small,
timid voice.

"For the last time, NO, though if you start screaming again, I'll be sorely
tempted."

"Eep! I'll be good!" Usagi replied, sitting as far back as she could on the
park bench without tipping it over.

The panther nodded satisfactorily. "Good. Now..." She took a tentative sniff
of the air. "Is that salmon I smell?"

"Ah...hai?"

"Couldn't spare a bit, could you? I haven't had a chance to hunt tonight."

"Hai!" Immediately Usagi reached into her bag and withdrew a bento full of
rolled sushi. She slid it across the ground toward the panther. "Help
yourself!"

"Thanks." For a moment, the large black cat ate silently. "This is really
good. You make it?" she asked at length.

"N-no...my mother did..."

"Ah." Nodding, the panther licked her lips. "Okay, that's done. Now..."

"H-how come you can t-talk?" Usagi asked.

The panther sighed. "I was about to get to that."

"Okay! Sorry!"

"My name is Luna," the cat said. "I was sent to find you, Princess
Serenity..."

"I'm not a princess and my name isn't Serenity," Usagi interrupted. "You've
got the wrong--"

"YOU are Princess Serenity," Luna informed her. "You don't remember it yet,
but you will. You were the princess of the Moon Kingdom thousands of years
ago during the Silver Millenium."

"I was--what?"

"A princess," Luna repeated. "Of the moon."

"Of the moon?"

"Yes." Luna began to pace around the bench; Usagi grew more nervous as the
cat drew closer. "Your mother the Queen--"

"My mother's not a queen--"

"Your mother BACK THEN the Queen," Luna snapped, causing Usagi to flinch,
"sent you and her little whor--*warriors* forward in time when you died to
be reborn so that you could all fight again if you needed to. Though why she
sent *you* is beyond me, but...anyway." She drew herself up and fixed Usagi
with her fiery gaze. "The forces that wiped out the Moon Kingdom before are
on the move again, the elite warriors of the moon are being revived, and
you, Princess Serenity, must lead them." She dipped her head slightly. "And
I have been tasked with the job of finding and protecting you." Her eyes
flared brightly, and a small crimson flame erupted at her feet. "I was
instructed to give this to you once I found you."

Usagi blinked as the flames resolved into a small golden brooch with a
silver-white crescent moon engraved on the front. "Pretty."

"Well, go on, take it."

Usagi stood hesitantly and reached forward, very wary of Luna's sharp teeth.
"O-okay..." Once she had hold of it, she admired it for a moment before
pinning it to the bow on the front of her school uniform. "Now what?"

"Look up, Serenity. Look up at the moon."

Usagi did so. A long moment passed. Nothing seemed to happen. "I'm looking
at the moon, Luna."

Luna frowned. "Okay, this isn't going as smoothly as I ho--"

The brooch began to flare with blinding silver light, and shot a beam into
the sky. Usagi rose off the ground, her ponytails waving in the air.

Luna hissed and shied away from the intense light. After several seconds, it
faded--and a very different girl stood in Usagi's place.



=-------------=



"What the--"

Mina didn't give him a chance to react before charging, aiming a flying kick
at his gun hand. The revolver went flying, bouncing once on the edge of the
roof before going over and plummeting to the street below.

The thief blinked, then ducked a second kick, backflipped across the roof,
and drew a rose from his jacket, which he threw. It clipped Mina in the
right arm, but she ignored it. "Give it up. You can't win."

"Who--what--who ARE you?" the thief asked.

"I'm a warrior for good, and I punish evildoers and pretty cooks!"

The thief blinked at her. "Um...you mean petty crooks, don't you?"

Mina blinked back at him. "Uh...yeah." She scratched the back of her neck
sheepishly. "Sorry, I guess I'm getting a little exci--HEY! Why am I
apologising to you?" She scowled. "Stop distracting me! You're gonna give
back what you stole and turn yourself in, or I'll--"

"You'll what?"

"I'll punish you!"

"Oooh, kinky."

The blond blushed furiously. "NOT what I meant, you pervert!"

The thief chuckled. "In any case, I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I must
decline--you see, I make it sort of a rule to never get caught, and I'm
certainly not going to start turning myself in for breaking and entering
just because some British schoolgirl in a skimpy outfit tells me to."

"We'll see about THAT," she said, scowling. She extended her right arm,
index finger pointed at his heart. "CRESCENT BEAM!"

The thief's eyes widened as a bolt of golden light lanced out, catching him
in the chest and slamming him across the roof. He went over the edge of the
roof, and barely had time to fire an anchor line from his glove. It sank
into the side of the building, and he hung for a moment, shoulder aching,
before lowering himself to the ground. "What...the hell...was THAT?" he
gasped out, clutching his chest as he stumbled toward his bike.

Three seconds later, he was thankful for the armoured lining of his cape, as
a second beam pierced the gas tank of the motorcycle, causing it to explode.
The fireball singed him and threw him into the street; he rolled, smothering
the flames in his tuxedo, and staggered to his feet.

Mina leapt off the roof and landed lightly before him, hands on her hips.
"Now do you give up?" she asked.

He coughed. "Fine, you--what the hell?!" He glanced up sharply, and pointed.
"Behind you!"

"Oh, please. I'm not stupid enough to fall for *that*," the blond retorted.

Three roses were suddenly in the thief's hand. He threw one in Mina's
direction; she ducked and prepared to return fire, when she heard the sound
of flesh being pierced behind her, followed by a scrape of metal on
pavement. She whirled--

A massive, bloated green fist attempted to separate her head from her
shoulders. "Gah! What the hell?!"

"I tried to warn you!" the thief replied, already aiming another rose at the
strange creature.

Mina backflipped down the street, coming to a rest beside the tuxedo-clad
burglar, and took stock of the situation. The monster bearing down on them
stood about seven feet tall, with green, swollen skin, sightless yellow
eyes, and a thin thatch of dirty grey hair which seemed to be falling out
with every step it took. It wore filthy, frayed brown clothes which were
split at the seams, and was surrounded by a stink of alcohol and
formaldehyde and a swarm of flies. One hand was oozing a sickly grey-green
pus; there was a large meat cleaver lying on the street behind it, covered
with more of the same and pinned down by a rose. Its other hand was shedding
a dull amber glow on the pavement before it.

"Doiiiiiiiiii," it rasped menacingly at them.



=-------------=



Usagi stared at the white silk gloves covering her hands. "What the--?"

Luna dipped her head, eyes burning darkly. "As I said...you are Princess
Serenity."

The teenager picked at the broad white skirts of the dress she now wore.
"How did--?"

The panther muttered something under her breath. A disc of silver light
flickered between them. "Take a look at yourself," she advised.

Usagi blinked, and looked up at the floating disc, which now bore her
reflection. "Aaah?" she breathed, lips pursed in a small 'o' of surprise.

She wore a long, flowing gown of shimmery white silk, the hem of which swept
the ground at her back, and parted in front just above the ankle, showing a
pair of pearlescent high-heeled slippers. The low-cut bodice was trimmed in
silver and gold lace at the top, and a brooch--the very one Luna had given
her earlier--rested in the centre of her chest, just below the modest
cleavage the gown afforded. Elbow-length white silk gloves graced her hands,
with a bracelet of small, softly glowing pearls on her right wrist. A
delicate silver tiara was balanced upon her head, and earrings of pearls and
golden crescent moons dangled from her earlobes.

The clothing, however, was not as great a surprise as the changes to Usagi
herself. Her skin had become pale, nearly translucent; her normally dark
brown eyes were deep, crystalline blue, and her hair, tied in twin round
buns on the side of her head and trailing to her ankles in long, streaming
ponytails, was pure gold.

"What...happened to me?" Usagi asked, placing her hands upon her cheeks.

"This is who you were in the past," Luna rumbled. "This is your true self.
You are Princess Serenity."

The princess stared at herself in the magical mirror for a long moment.
Then...

"OH GOD WHAT AM I GONNA DO I CAN'T GO HOME LIKE THIS MAMA AND PAPA WON'T
RECOGNISE ME AND I'LL GET THROWN OUT ON THE STREET AND I'LL HAVE TO EAT
GARBAGE AND SLEEP IN A BOX WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME YOU STUPID CAT
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Luna stared for a moment. Then, she sighed. "This isn't permanent, you
know."

"AND NARU-CHAN AND EVERYONE WON'T KNOW ME AND I'LL HAVE TO SELL MY BODY AND
I'LL GET ARRESTED AND GO TO JAIL AND TURN INTO A HARDENED CRIMINAL AND--"

*SMACK*

"Ite!" The blonde sank to her knees, nursing a scratch on her cheek.
"What--?" She looked into the fiery crimson eyes of the panther, and gulped
nervously. "Wh--"

Luna snarled. "Listen, and listen well. The brooch I gave you will allow you
to transform into your true self, and into the girl you are in this time.
You will be able to change back and forth from now on."

"Change--you mean I'm not gonna look like this forever?"

"Not if you don't want to."

"Oh." Usagi paused. "Okay. So what now?"



=-------------=



"So...what now?"

Mina and the thief stood side-by-side, several metres down the street from
the putrid green monster. Several of the thief's roses protruded from its
flesh, and its shoulder was singed where Mina had nailed it with a Crescent
Beam, but it continued to advance, once again holding its wickedly sharp
meat cleaver.

"I don't know about you, but I'm thinking of running for my life," the
tuxedo-clad catburglar said.

"Hey! I'm not finished with you yet," Mina snapped.

"And that monster seems a lot more interested in you than it is in me," the
thief pointed out. As if in agreement, the green monstrosity threw its knife
at the blond. Mina yelped and dove to the side; the cleaver embedded itself
in the pavement behind her.

"Crescent Beam!" Mina shouted, taking aim. A shaft of golden light pierced
the monster through the chest. It staggered, then continued its advance.

"Well, I'll be seeing you," the thief said. He launched a line from his
glove at a nearby building and swung away, cape billowing in the night
breeze.

"ASSHOLE!" Mina bellowed at his retreating form. "Just wait till I--ack!"
She rolled away from a clumsy swing by the monster, coming up in a sloppy
defensive stance. "I am so dead," she moaned.



=-------------=



The thief looked down at the battle in the street from the balcony of a
condominium. "Poor girl. Ah well." He turned to leave--

--and was brought up short as he collided with a man in a white suit. "Going
somewhere?"

"Yes, actually. Away from here." The thief drew a rose from his jacket--

--which promptly burst into flame, forcing him to drop it.

The man shook his head, his long white hair swaying behind him. "Sorry, but
you're not going anywhere." His eyes glowed silver. "Get back down there and
help that girl, or you'll be sorry."

The thief stared at him for a moment. He then sighed. "This just isn't my
night."



=-------------=



The princess sat on a bench, head in her hands. The panther sat nearly, eyes
burning dully as she watched her. "Well?"

Usagi sighed. "I don't know what to think of all this, Luna."

Luna shrugged her shoulders. "There's nothing for you to think about. You're
the Princess of the Moon Kingdom."

"But there IS no Moon Kingdom. So what was the point of bothering me with
this?"

"Because my que--" Luna coughed. "Queen Serenity's enemies are returning to
this world. Without you and the warriors, Earth will be overrun with
darkness. Humanity will be enslaved by demonic hordes."

Usagi sighed. "And what am *I* supposed to do about it?" she asked.

"You must use the light of the maboroshi no ginzuishou to save this world
from the Dark Kingdom," Luna advised.

"The what?"

"The crystal that belonged to your mother. It..." Luna frowned. "I don't
know what became of it, actually. But now that I've found you, you should be
able to find the ginzuishou."

"How?"

Luna blinked. "You don't know?"

"No!"

"Ah well. We'll figure something out."

Usagi stared at her. "You're serious."

"Dead serious."

The princess sighed. "I don't know, Luna. I--"

"Wait."

"Eh?"

Luna stared off into the night, her nose twitching. Her eyes flared, and she
hissed. "Serenity, something is..."

"What?"

"We've got to move. Quickly! They're coming for you!"

"Who?"

"THE DARK KINGDOM! Hurry! Get out of here!" Luna turned to run.

"But how--?"


"MOVE OR I'LL EAT YOU!"

"EEP!" And so the blond princess and the panther ran off into the night.

A red-haired, pale-skinned woman stood on a burnt-out streetlamp, smiling
thinly. "Kill them."

And below her, four monstrosities shambled across the park...



=-------------=



Mina shrieked as the monster's fist crashed into the wall just above her
head. Things were going very badly indeed--she was down, she was trapped,
and the hideous green thing was about to splatter her all over the city she
hated more than any other place in the world.

And then its head vanished.

She blinked. "What the--?"

"I figured it wouldn't stand up to my Smoking Bomber," a familiar voice
drifted from a short distance away. The blond looked up, eyes wide...

The thief stood nearby, casually hefting a grenade launcher from which
trails of smoke curled into the night air. He grinned at her. "So, still
want me to go to jail?"

She stared. "What--where did you--?"

"Lucky thing you didn't get this when you blew up my bike earlier," he
replied, reloading the grenade launcher. "I hate to use Smoking Bomber here,
but..."

Mina stood up, brushing herself off. "You came back to help me..."

The thief shrugged. "I figured you might be grateful enough to join me for a
nightcap or something," he said.

The blond glared at him. "Don't push your luck, buddy," she snapped. She
looked down at the headless monster. "Well, that about--"

"Look out!"

Mina leapt instinctively away as the arms of the monster flailed about where
her ankles had been a split second earlier. "No way!" she cried.

"What the hell IS this thing?" the thief asked, bracing to fire his grenade
launcher again.

"Whatever it is, KILL IT! QUICK!" Mina snapped.

"Okay, okay." Once the blond was clear, the catburglar fired again, blowing
the top of the monster's torso completely away. Greyish gore splattered the
street, some of it splashing onto the two of them. The thief wrinkled his
nose. "You're paying for my dry cleaning," he grumbled.

"Ewww, I've got this crap on my LEGS!" Mina whined.

"On second thought, nevermind the nightcap. Maybe just a shower."

Mina glared at the thief, kicked him squarely in the balls, then stalked
off.

"A *cold* shower," the thief wheezed, clutching his groin as he collapsed to
the ground.



=-------------=



Usagi stood behind a pair of tall trees, peering nervously through the
narrow gap between their trunks. "What's going on here, Luna?" she asked.

Beside her, the panther's hackles were up, her fangs bared. Trails of
crimson sparks erupted from her eyes. "He told me they were ready to move,
but I didn't think they'd start operating in the open so *soon*..."

"Who?"

Luna sighed. "The Dark Kingdom, like I said before. Your enemies. They've
come back from their prison, and they must know you're here. That's why
we've got to get away as fast as we can...they'll want to kill you."

"Kill me?!" Usagi squeaked.

Luna nodded. "Duck low, stay still, and don't make a sound."

The princess swallowed nervously, but at a fiery glance from the panther,
she complied.

Luna closed her eyes, the scar on her forehead dripping fresh blood on the
ground. *Master. I've got her. We're in trouble. They're coming. We need
help...*



=-------------=



*Master. I've got her. We're in trouble. They're coming. We need help...*

Atop the roof, he cursed. He could feel the Princess, knew she had been
awakened. He could now dimly feel the auras of other guardians, scattered
throughout the city. And below him, the lone active Senshi had just nearly
gotten killed by a single agent of the Dark.

There was absolutely no way he could see to salvage this situation without
overplaying his hand. And yet...

He bit off a curse as two unnatural forms emerged from opposite alleys,
positioned to ambush the awakened Senshi below. While not nearly as menacing
as the first one, they would be difficult for her to defeat, and there would
be no chance of reaching the Princess in time...



=-------------=



Mina swore vehemently as she backed into a wall.

Two more monsters had appeared out of nowhere. They weren't as impressive as
the one the thief had destroyed, but they looked decidely homicidal
nevertheless. They had greyish-green skin and thin, frayed hair--the word
'zombie' was the most fitting description the blond could come up with for
them. One had torn a dustbin lid in half and held it like a fan in one hand,
while holding a length of metal pipe in the other; the other zombie had
found the museum robber's gun.

"God, what is this, night of the living dead?"

The zombie with the gun fired at her. She tensed, raising her arm to shield
her face, and was surprised when the bullet bounced harmlessly off her
glove. She blinked. "Okay, so I'm bulletproof. That's a relief." Smiling
grimly, she dropped into a combat stance and prepared to enter the fray...



=-------------=



"Accursed..." Luna spat, and began hissing vehemently in some arcane
language. Usagi glanced at her.

"Wha--what's wrong, Luna?"

"Princess, I don't think we're going to be getting help here. We might...be
dead."

"Dead? But...but...you're a big kitty with teeth and stuff! Can't you do
anything?"

Luna gave her a flat look. "Sure, I can probably take one, maybe two of them
before they kill me. Plus, whoever's controlling them is still floating
around somewhere, and I'm nowhere near strong enough for *that*."

"Oh. Well...um..."

The foliage around them rustled as the shambling horrors drew closer. The
city lights shone down upon them, and Usagi could now see that they were--or
had been--human. Now, they were twisted, misshapen *things*, soulless
corpses whose sightless, jaundiced eyes rolled madly in sunken sockets as
they lurched unsteadily toward their goal. One of them touched a bush, and
the princess stifled a shriek of horror as it began to wither and die,
leaves immediately browning and shrivelling.

Luna sighed. "Oh well, best to go out fighting." With a terrifying roar, she
leapt from hiding, tackling the nearest monstrosity and sinking her jaws
deep into its rotting flesh, tearing its arm off at the shoulder. Another
one came up behind her and grabbed her head, pulling her away; the downed
zombie kicked sharply upward, and Luna yowled.

*Luna...she's fighting to protect me...*

The other monsters shambled closer, manic glee on their grey faces, rotten
teeth bared in sadistic leers. The panther struggled, lashing out with teeth
and claws, blasts of flame erupting from her eyes, but she was slowly being
overcome by the zombies.

*I can't...just sit here. But what can I do...? I'm just a normal girl...I'm
scared...*

And then, suddenly, from somewhere inside, a voice told her not to be
afraid.

A pale silver light shone from the brooch on her chest.

And Usagi's eyes widened.

"I understand."

Luna roared out a warning. "Serenity! RUN!"

The zombies bore down on her, trying to break her, trying to tear her limbs
off, trying to gouge her eyes out, break her jaw.

The princess stood and emerged from hiding. "Stop."

The four corpses turned to stare at her.

"I'm the one you want."

"Serenity, NO--!"

"So come get me."

As one, the nightmarish horrors advanced on their intended victim...

"Moon Prism Power..."

Luna's eyes widened, and she hissed, recoiling. A power--! Such POWER--!

"MAKE-UP!"

The world exploded in silver flame.



=-------------=



His head snapped around sharply, white hair fanning behind him. "What in
the--?"



=-------------=



Mina paused in her fight with the corpses as a sudden intense feeling
of...*something* washed over her. She was at a loss to explain it. Then, in
a heartbeat, it was gone. "CRESCENT BEAM!" she cried, drilling yet another
hole in the nearest zombie.



=-------------=



Behind his silken mask, the thief's eyes widened. "I feel
something...strange...could it be...?"



=-------------=



Luna's eyes widened.

The princess' silken white gown and delicate appearance had vanished in a
silver flash. In its place...

She was still unmistakeably Serenity. But there was a harsh intensity to her
sapphire eyes now. A set to her jaw, a certain air of confidence about her.

She wore highly polished knee-high red boots that gleamed in the
streetlights. The white trim at the tops sported golden crescent moons. A
dark blue miniskirt flared about her hips, attached to an immaculate white
leotard with ribbed cuffs at the shoulders. A naval collar, matching the
skirt in colour, was attached to the top of the leotard, and the front was
adorned with a red bow, the centre of which sported a familiar golden
brooch. Elbow-length white silk gloves with red trim graced her hands. A red
choker with a gold crescent moon adorned her throat. A slim gold tiara with
a ruby in the centre graced her forehead. Round, bright red jewels shone
from the buns in her hair. Pearl and moon earrings dangled from her
earlobes.

She dropped into a combat stance that appeared flawless to the black
panther. Her eyes flickered across the four zombies, who had backed away
uncertainly in the wake of her transformation.

She nodded grimly, and raised her right hand.

"Silver Tide."

An intense, nearly blinding wave of rolling silver energy boiled outward
from the transformed princess, sweeping over the four attackers. The zombies
roared in pain as their flesh began to crumble. Dim, flickering amber flames
erupted from their mouths, floating into the night. Luna turned her head and
looked away as the brilliant light from the princess' attack burned the
unholy monsters into nothingness, leaving little more than piles of ash and
soiled, foul cloth.

The princess collapsed.

"Serenity?" Luna asked tentatively.



=-------------=



The pale woman cursed as the captive souls of her minions faded away, the
gems shattering in her hand. The four that had been sent after the princess
had died all at once, and the remaining two were on the verge of defeat.

Something was horribly amiss with this entire situation. Could the princess
already have the--?

As her remaining minions faded away, she felt a violent tug on her very
soul. She screamed in defiance, but was unable to resist the pull...

In a flash of ebon fire, the redhead vanished.



=-------------=



The phone rang.

"Hai, moshi-moshi?"

"Mamoru-kun? This is Tsukino Ikuko."

He blinked. "Hai?"

"I was just wondering...is Usagi there?"

"Usagi? No...why do you ask?"


The woman sighed. "I sent her over to your place last night to share a snack
with you, and for the two of you to get acquainted. She never came home, so
I just--"

"Last night? I wasn't here at all. I just came in, in fact," he replied. "I
was tied up in research."

"...oh. Then..."

"I wouldn't have any idea where she is, I'm sorry." A pause. "Tsukino-san,
I'd appreciate it if you not send Usagi over without calling to check with
me first. I'm very busy with studies and other commitments. I'm often in and
out at odd hours. I respect and honour the arrangement between our families,
but I'm afraid I don't have a great deal of time to spend on frivolous
encounters."

A very long pause. "...I see. Very well, Mamoru-kun, I'll respect your
wishes." Another pause. "You're not seeing other girls on the side, are
you?"

"Tsukino-san, I have neither the time nor the inclination for such
encounters, with anyone."

"Alright. I'm sorry for accusing you. If you hear from Usagi, please tell
her to come home straight away, alright?"

"I'll do that. I hope she's not in any trouble."

"Thank you."

With a long sigh, Mamoru hung up the phone, then reached up to remove the
silk domino mask from his face. The night had been a total loss. His gun had
gone missing, he'd had to use up expensive ammunition for the Smoking
Bomber, much of his gear would need extensive cleaning and repair, his bike
had been blown up, and on top of all that, he'd been relieved of the spoils.

Of course, he'd known the instant he removed it from the museum that the
Platina Selen was not the gem he was seeking. He also knew there was
absolutely no chance of fencing it--it was too rare, too recognisable, even
if he had it cut. He'd toyed with the notion of ransoming it, but that
wasn't his style.

In any event, the night's work would put a serious dent in his cash
reserves.

And to top it all off, he hadn't gotten anywhere with that cute chick in the
skirt...

Peeling off his tuxedo and tossing it on the sofa, Mamoru collapsed into bed
to catch a brief nap before heading off to an early class.

Complete and total loss.

=-------------=



"FOOL."

"Y-Your Majesty, I--"

"SILENCE!"

The redhead quailed.

Upon a throne caked in dried blood and decorated with gruesome, inhuman
skulls, a woman in flowing black silk robes sat, glowering menacingly at the
pale woman. She, too, had fiery copper hair, as well as cold grey eyes. Long
ornamental spikes protruded from leather shoulderguards, and a black crown
topped her head. Her chalk-white face was set in a mask of rage; a slim hand
with long, slender fingers ending in three-inch, black-painted nails pointed
at the pale woman cowering before the throne.

"I did not authorise your incursion to Earth. I did not authorise your
attack. And now, thanks to your incompetence, one Senshi is revived, the
Princess herself is awakened, they are aware of our existence, and
furthermore, you FAILED TO KILL EITHER OF THEM!"

"B-but, Your Majesty..."

"However, this is not entirely due to your incompetence. That...power.
Princess Serenity never possessed such power in times of old. Something is
not right. You may have performed a useful service despite your inexcusable
failure."

"Your Majesty, I--"

"HOWEVER!" The woman upon the throne stood now, descending the rough black
stone steps, "This does not excuse your open defiance. What possible reason
can you give for your disobedience, Morganite?"

"I...Your Majesty..."

"You have no defence of your actions, then?"

"N-no, but..."

"I see." The taller redhead nodded. She then thrust a hand
forward...directly into the chest of the other woman, whose eyes widened in
shock. Green-tinged blood began to ooze down her tunic.

"B-Beryl...sister..."

"As a sister and as a servant, you are useless to me," Beryl spat. She
wrenched her hand out of Morganite's chest, pulling a rough-hewn yellow
crystal which pulsed with an inner glow, the rhythm much like a heartbeat.
Smiling coldly, she closed her hand, and the crystal shattered, raining
fragments on the cold stone floor.

Morganite gasped one last, painful wheeze, and fell dead at her sister's
feet.

"JADEITE!" Beryl snapped. "Now that my dear sister's incompetence has
exposed us, we must begin gathering energy for our defence. I entrust this
task to you. Work quickly, and work in secret--do not allow the Princess or
her Senshi to interfere. We must restore our fallen Master!"

A man who had been standing in the shadows bowed deeply, clenching one
white-gloved fist to the breast of his iron grey jacket. His blonde hair
gleamed in the dim light of the throne chamber. "Hai, Queen Beryl-sama."
With that, he vanished in a pulse of darkness.

=-------------=

to be continued

=-------------=



================================
This is a test of the Emergency Ass Dance System.
              ~~*~~
The Eternal Lost Lurker
www.lurkerdrome.com