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grew close.  Ah, now was his chance!  With deliberate moment, Tracer
slowly lay down in his cot, curled himself away from the doorway, and
flexed his right hand, activating the silvery liquid.  His ears
remained attentive to the marching entourage coming closer and he
readied himself.

The steps stopped when they got to his cell.  There were a series of
beeps from the keypad near the entrance.  Tracer imagined the
invisible barrier dissolving as the steps continued.  He lay perfectly
still on his cot as the liquid began to form around his hand.

"Hello, Timelord Tracer."  Tracer gritted his teeth.  Of course they'd send
Naes.  "We have some questions concerning your activities as of late."

Tracer waited, his newly formed clawed-hand hidden from sight and
smirked.  If there was ever a person who deserved this, it would be
that conniving bastard.

There was a pregnant pause and when Tracer refused to reply, Naes
continued stepping closer.  "There is some doubt of your loyalty after
that stunt you pulled.  Honestly, hacking in our restricted archives?"
 He tutted.  "I never would have thought you were keen enough."

Tracer's ears picked up three distinct set of footsteps approaching.
The odds weren't in his favor, but he would live with it.  Gradually,
he steadied his relaxed body into striking position on his cot.  'Just
a little closer.'

"For everything we've done for you, why you would take advantage of
our trust."  Naes spoke nonchalantly.  "The Counsule would like to
know what you had to say in your defense."

'Now I've got you, bastard.'  Tracer sprang from his bed and bounded
toward the small frail man.

*WHAM!*

Naes just smiled at the flattened face of the Timelord as it slid
down the invisible barrier.  Tracer's cheek burned painfully as he
slipped down the barrier.  Before he reached the ground, he could see
a small device in Naes' small, wry hand.

"Not very wise, Timelord.  We have made several changes while you were
away."  The old man casually thumbed the thin control device while
Tracer collected his wits which were still scattered upon the floor.
"Please give my regards to Callide for providing us with that AI he
left behind.  Avex is an interesting program."

"Avex?"  Tracer murmured, that name sounded familiar.

"It was the machine you used to hack our personal archives when you
went on your little mission to find Ms. Animi."  Naes scolded before
adding in a hushed whisper.  "I definitely hope the dead woman was
worth the trouble."

Straightening, Naes continued his lecture as he admired the thin
device.  "Anyway, Avex has been able to develop this rather clever use
of the force field system.  I can control the area the field covers,
containing you to any area in this cell.  But enough about Avex, we'd
like to know more about Avex's old master, Callide, and what he wanted
with Faust's Sword."

Reaching his feet, Tracer felt something press against his arms,
squeezing them to his sides.  With a content sigh, Naes stepped back
as the two stocky looking androids crowd upon him.  "Of course, the
field doesn't affect anyone with the appropriate hardware."

Tracer became acutely aware of the matching wristbands Naes and both
humanoid machines wore, with him as the unfortunate exception.

"You bastard."  The Timelord growled.

Naes shook his head as both guards raised their clubs.  "I suppose
this is the only way you're ever going to learn anything."  His
leathery skin peeled back into a crooked smile.  "It's unfortunate."

=09---------------------------------------------------

It seemed like they were walking through a maze.  Serena was
dumbfounded that one hallway could snake around so much, they had been
walking for some time now and she felt like it would never end.

The anxious blonde peeked around their stocky armed guards that now
were escorting them to somewhere or nowhere, depending on how she
looked at it.  Peering more closely she could see seams around the
faces and limbs of their guards making them appear more like oversized
toy soldiers.  Serena kinda wished the Timelords they had met earlier
would have stayed with them instead of retreating to parts unknown
outside this maze of a building.  These pale-faced things looked like
they came straight out of a horror movie.

The five members of the Counsule were walking far ahead of them and at
one point one of the white robed individuals peeled away with the
still unconscious Tracer in toe.  She did notice the one who
introduced himself earlier, Nairb, still clutched Tracer's sword in
his hands rather possessively.  Considering what she had seen before
when Tracer had wielded it she wasn't too surprised a group like the
Counsule would take great interest in the object.

Serena shuddered slightly.  She could hardly believe those five old
and frail people had ordered the slaughter of Cindy's family and who
knows how many other innocent people.  There was no telling what they
would do to Tracer or to them.  Yet, their leader was so chipper and
fairly benevolent when he introduced himself.  Perhaps some of the
wickedest beings were politicians, she thought.

"Is there something wrong?"

Leaning her head against Darien's shoulder, Serena's stomach bubbled
with anxiety at his question.  It also gurgled loudly in hunger.  She
blushed in response.  "Uh, I'm not sure."

Serena didn't need to lift her head to see him smirking.  "I can take=20
a guess."

Frowning, Serena smacked her fianc=C3=A9 lightly on the chest.  "No that's
not it!"  The blonde girl raised her head and chewed on her lip.
"Something doesn't feel right about this."

"I don't blame you."  A husky voice added.  Peering over Darien's
shoulder, Serena saw Erica had her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed,
keeping their escorts in her sights.  "It seems like they're taking us
in circles."

"Not really."  Mina chimed in, her eyes still following the low arch
of the hall above them.

The taller woman's eyebrow twitched.  "Whatever."

Unfazed, Mina pointed to the ceiling.  "You know when you get bored
in class and count the number of holes in the title above to keep from
falling asleep?  Or sometimes I like to play connect the dots in my
head.  It's amazing what kind of animals you can make in our
classroom.  I usually like to go alphabetically starting with
aardvarks.  It's really cool, you see-"

"It looks like we've arrived."  Erica interrupted dryly.

Everyone stopped and Serena could see a large heavy looking door
adorn with all sorts of colorful jewels.  The stones and the door's
shiny golden finish awed Serena which she quickly realized was
probably the point.  What was behind that door she wondered?  Was it
someplace important?

Nairb faced the group and smiled warmly.  "On behalf of the Counsule,
we would like to invite you to feast at our table today."

The older man motioned for the group to follow as the doors opened on
their own.  Just inside, the gleam of a large banquet could be seen
set up with plates piled high with food.

Serena's mouth hung open.  "This is your dining room?"

Nairb turned slightly and flashed Serena a disarming smile.  "Why of
course, Lady Serenity.  Only the best for a legendary goddess and her
court."

Being reminded again that some of these people worshiped her made
Serena's stomach do flip flops and her hunger on top of that didn't
make her feel anymore comfortable.  "Ugh, I'm honored.  I suppose."

Seeing the feast, Serena's mouth began to water and noticed Nairb's
expectant look.  Realizing this, Serena took stock of her friends who
were watching her and waiting for her next move.  She felt divided,
just from all the horrible things they had done to Cindy and who knows
who else, it just didn't feel right to accept a meal from them.  On
the other hand she was very hungry and all that sushi and steak and
tempora looked really delicious.

Her stomach growled again much to her chagrin and her face was buried
under a deep crimson blush.

"It's alright."  Darien whispered in her ear as he squeezed her
shoulder.  "It's okay.  We all need to eat but we need to be careful."

Nodding hesitantly, Serena locked eyes with Nairb and strode up to
the table.  Very politely, the old man pulled out a seat and motioned
to her.

"Please sit and enjoy."  He made a big production of bowing and
stepped away to his own seat.

As the rest of the group got situated and slowly ate, the rest of the
Counsule, minus one member remained oddly silent during the meal.
Serena guessed they were waiting for them to take their fill.
Finally, curiosity got the best of the blonde girl and in between a
BBQ pork bun and a helping of miso soup; she lobbed a question at
them.

"So."  She started.  "Since, I guess you know a lot about us, we
hardly know anything about you."

"That's right!"  Mina chirped enthusiastically.  "You people
are definitely important=E2=80=A6 people!"

Erica sighed.

The old man chuckled.  "Why of course.  Forgive me for skipping some
formalities; I had assumed that feeding you and meeting any other
immediate needs would take priority."  Nairb stood and introduced the
rest of his peers.  "To my right is Fej and to his right is Anna Esor.
 On my left is LehCar and the person who had to miss our little feast
is Naes."

The other women and man inclined their heads as they were introduced
and each watched Serena avidly.  However, Nairb continued to speak
freely and smoothly a complete contrast to the tension she sensed from
the others.

"After the death of the Community's founder and first ruler, Faust,
his next of kin had no desire to take up the mantel.  Thus it was
proposed that a group of competent men and women elected from the
Community would guide them.  That was about two generations ago.  It
is our duty to look after the best interest of the citizens who live
within the city."

"I'm sure you do."  Erica added flatly.  Serena cringed.  The last
thing she wanted to do was give these people a reason to harm them.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, (at this point Serena couldn't figure
*any* of this out), the Counsule members remained silent as Nairb
smiled and shook his head.  "Now, now, I realize that Tracer is
slightly mad at us for trying to bring him to trial," suddenly Nairb's
playful tone hardened slightly, "but he knows the laws and no matter
what his standing within the Community is, he must bear the
responsibility for his actions."

Serena wrinkled her nose.  This was unexpected.  Tracer was a
criminal?  Wasn't he working for them to bring Cindy to justice?

"I thought he was one of your soldiers.  What did he do?"  She asked
without thinking.

For an instant, Nairb appeared pained and the rest of the Counsule
raised their collective eyebrows.  "He took advantage of our
hospitality.  Please understand, Lady Serenity that this is a topic I
feel most sensitive about and I'd wish not to linger on it anymore.
Suffice to say, he knows what's he's gotten himself into."

"I'm sorry."  She wasn't sure why she was apologizing but the
fleeting pain Nairb displayed seemed genuine.

"Maybe you could explain something to us."  Darien spoke, his eyes
boring into Nairb as they had the entire meal.  "Why do the people
here worship Serenity?"

"Ah."  Nairb raised a finger, all smiles once again.  "The Children
of Serenity.  They believe that Serenity will appear and save the
Community from some great evil."

"What kind of great evil?"  Erica asked slowly.

Nairb shrugged, nonplussed.  "I'm not certain.  The only certainty I
have is that they are just as uncertain as I."

"Uh, right."  Serena breathed.

"But how did they know about Serenity?"  Mina pursed her lips and
tapped them thoughtfully.

Serena noticed the other Counsule members turn a wary eye to Nairb,
who just casually answered the question.  "They also believe that
Serenity was the one who helped create the Community and it was her
blessing that it was able to flourish."  Nairb sat back and waved his
hand flippantly.  "Honestly I don't know where they get this from.
It's documented very thoroughly that the Community was created by the
efforts of Faust."

Then the room went silent as both groups just watched each other
closely.  Serena for her part just quietly sipped on some green tea
hoping this impasse wouldn't erupt into violence.

"Well."  Nairb sat up straight.  "I hope you found the food to your
satisfaction and there are a few matters that I must discuss with you.
 In particular about how you came to grace us with your presence.  It
is a bit of a mystery to us as to why Tracer would go to your time
stream since it is forbidden to do so, especially with such a valuable
artifact as Faust's Sword."

Serena's eyes grew large in surprise.  "You mean he stole that sword?"

Again, Nairb's expression became serious.  "No, he somehow was able
to recover it.  We thought it had been lost forever after Trekker
died."

"Trekker?"  The other Counsule members fidgeted at Serena's question.

Nairb darted a glance at his hands.  "He was Tracer's father."

Tracer had a family?  The concept blew her mind and it raised a whole
bushel of other questions.  What happened to his mother?  Was she dead
too?  Did she die with his father?  Serena's heart seized.  Had Tracer
grown up an orphan?  She was reminded of her fianc=C3=A9 who grew up in an
orphanage as well as Lita whose entire family died in that plane
crash.  They had confided in her how tough their lives had been going
through life without a family.  All of the sudden some things about
the loud, obnoxious Timelord were starting to make sense.

Serena set her jaw, her plan decided.  As she focused her eyes, she
caught Mina studying her closely before beaming a bright cheery smile
at her.  What was that about, she wondered?

At that moment, Nairb stood up from the table and gesture to Serena
and her friends.  "Perhaps it would be fortuitous if we continue the
questions later.  I would assume that you all would like to retire to
your quarters?"

"Quarters?"  Erica said tightly, her voice slowly rising.  "More
like-"

"Why thank you so much for that generous offer!"  Mina chirped,
earning her a glare from Erica.  "However we're really not that tired,
but we'd love to look around the place.  It looks so, so=E2=80=A6
fantastically amazing!"

Nairb as well as everyone else in the room for that matter, blinked.
"Uh, why thank you.  I think.  Ahem, anyway, you are more than welcome
to tour the Counsule Building but please let us show you where you'll
be staying."

With that Nairb led the group to a cluster of rooms that were a
relatively short distance from the dining hall.  As the Counsule
members bid their farewell, Serena stole a glance at the sword in
Nairb's possession and her mind desperately sought how to make the
next move.

"Um, Mr. Nairb."  Serena called out.

The man paused, whirling around and smiling widely.  "What is it Lady Seren=
ity?"

Serena sucked in her lower lip, hoping she wasn't making a potentially
big mistake.  "I was wondering if I could speak to you in private?
Maybe in your quarters?"

"Serena?"  The blonde hid her wince as her fianc=C3=A9 hissed in her ear
and griped her arm.

Facing away from Nairb, Serena offered Darien the most loving and
sincere smile and spoke softly, hoping that the old man couldn't hear
her.  "Please Darien, I have a plan."

Darien's dark blue eyes flashed and he whispered harshly into her
bangs.  "What plan?  I'm not about to let you go off with that snake
back to his room alone!"

Serena held his gaze and whispered back with conviction.  "No, I need
you to help Mina and Erica search for Tracer and bring him back here
while I get his father's sword."

Darien shook his head in disbelief.  "Are you crazy?  There's no way
I'm going to rescue that asshole.  You remember what happened last
time we saw him?  What makes you think he's going to help us?"

Darien's questions did somber Serena slightly.  What did she expect
from the Timelord?  Memories of Tracer as he lunged at her on the roof
of the restaurant were still fresh in her mind.  At the time he had
every intention of doing her harm.  Though she did have some major
reservations about all of this, Serena was now convinced, considering
recent revelations, there was more to Tracer than what met the eye.

Sighing, Serena peered at an opposing wall breaking eye contact.  "I
know it's crazy, but please trust me, okay?"  On impulse, the blonde
girl hopped up on her tip toes and gave Darien a quick peck on his
lips.  "Now please go with Mina and Erica and tell them my plan."

Her heart fluttered again as he regarded her with concern.  God, she
loved him.  "But you don't have your crystal and you can't transform,
how are you going to defend yourself?  I don't trust them."

Serena smiled warmly and caressed her lover's cheek.  "Don't worry
about me, okay, Darien, I'm a big girl."  Then she brightened, patting
him on the arm playfully.  "Besides, I'm a Goddess around here, so it
has to account for something, neh?"

Slowly, Darien nodded and exhaled.  "Alright.  But the moment
anything goes wrong, I'm coming back for you, Tracer or no."

Serena nodded.  "Okay.  Once I get the sword, I'll use my communicator
and locate you guys."

"Yeah."  Darien snorted.  "I hope you know what you're doing."

Serena cringed.  'I hope so too.'  She left unsaid.

Releasing her, Darien gave the old man waiting behind her one more
warning glare before he walked back to Erica and Mina.  Twirling on
her toes, Serena put on her happiest expression and hopped over to the
old man, who was currently toying with one of the ends of his white
cloak.

"Damn things got a loose thread."  He replied sheepishly as she
approached.    "Would the Lady care to join me for a bit of
conversation and drink back in my chambers?"

Serena nearly groaned when he flashed a charming smile at her once
more which she returned in false enthusiasm.  God, she hoped she knew
what she was doing.
=09
=09=09*=09=09*=09=09*

"So how do you like your pancakes?"  Cindy asked her young companion.

The pink-haired youth shoved helping into her mouth and chewed
impatiently and swallowed.  "These are great!  Almost as good as the
one's Serena's mom makes back home."

"Good."  The blonde Traveller smiled as the chef approached them,
wiping his hands.

"Is there anything else I can do for you gentlemen?"  The burly man
asked in a way that filled Cindy with trepidation.

She held her breath in part because she was nervous that the man had
found her out and second because it was too painful to breath with the
cloth wrapped around her chest so tightly.  She just prayed that the
cloth would hold for the duration, the thought of being found out as
the only woman on the planet left her ill at ease.  Casting a wary
glance out into the street behind the bench, Cindy could see men of
all shapes and sizes bustling about in their mid-morning activities as
well as the female robots dotting along behind a few of them.

"Uh, no."  Cindy had answered in her most manly sounding voice, though
it must have sounded like she was suffering from a cold.
"Everything's all peachy here!"

The chef regarded them as if they had flowers growing from their heads
but shrugged and disappeared behind the high counter where his other
sizzling orders waited.  He had been giving them that look ever since
they sat down and asked for pancakes.  The chef, Ukyo, looked at them
astonished and slightly insulted that they wanted them plain but made
them without any further protest.  Fortunately for them they were one
of a few patrons sitting on the bench at this stand so once the cook
went back to work, Cindy relaxed again.

Munching on her pancake, Reenie spoke again.  "Ya know Serena used to
always burn her pancakes whenever she tried to make them."

Cindy smiled at the child.  "You miss her don't you?"

"Somewhat."  Reenie admitted.  The look of guilt was unmistakable to
Cindy.  Sometimes this kid could look so adorable.  "Did you know
before you showed up on our doorstep we got into this huge argument
about=E2=80=A6 something.  I can't remember anymore.  Probably something
stupid.  Then you happened and it was like Serena transformed.  She
seemed so much like Mama it was scary."

That brought a smile to Cindy's face and a lot of fond memories.
"Yeah.  I remember reading about your mother and her friends when I
was your age.  My mother would tell me stories when I was little and I
would dream I made the world a better place like Serenity."

The girl brightened and her pink bobbed as she bounced excitedly.
"Really?  Mama used to tell me stories all the time about Sailor Mo-"

Reenie's red eyes widened and her mouth hung open.  Cindy became
alarmed and panicked.  Was there something in the pancakes?  Was there
a disease in this world she wasn't immune to?  She nearly became
hysterical with all the possibilities.

"Reenie?"  Cindy shook the girl and searched her face.  "Reenie!=20
Are you okay?"

As if jolted from her stupor, Reenie grabbed Cindy.  "The Silver Crystal!"

In the blink of an eye, Reenie escaped Cindy's grip and was tearing
down the street.  Immediately, Cindy took off after her young charge
wondering what the child had sensed exactly.  Was it truly the Silver
Crystal?  If it was, then it must mean that Serenity was here with
them.  If she was here then maybe the others had landed here as well!
With a little bounce in her step, Cindy ran, trying to keep pace with
Reenie.

'How can she run so fast?'  Cindy wondered.

"Hey!"  Screamed the chef from the stand.  "Come back here and pay
for your meal!  Damn you thief!"

'Then again,' the blonde mused as she ran faster and slipped into the
flow of the crowd, 'this is probably better than having to explain to
Reenie I didn't have any money to pay for the food.'

=09---------------------------------------------------

David was feeling pretty good despite the disturbing number of
marionettes lounging about the relatively cramped room.  He wasn't
sure why his brother had such a fascination with those soulless
machines like all the other drooling men.  David wrinkled his nose,
for a country that prides itself on cleanliness the air was awfully
musty and there was a distinct and unpleasant odor in the air.   But
then again it was those drooling, smelly fools who were making his
current business venture a success.  Still the way these men carried
on with their marionettes really creeped him out.

Shamefully, his brother was the same way except David had been able
to excuse it as the eccentric mind of a mad engineer.  However denying
it all he could, he knew that Matt was in love with Hikari.  He didn't
understand it really.  How could a man love a machine?  It didn't
breathe and its touch didn't warm your skin nor could it hold an
intelligent conversation over dinner.  The whole thing was too
artificial to David and was hardly what he'd crave in terms of a
relationship.  Perhaps his brother desired the touch of a woman?
David shook his head.  What a queer idea considering there were no
women on this planet.  There hadn't been for several generations they
were nearly a myth now.

The lights dimmed and David let the issue drop as his meal ticket was
about to come on stage.  Well what he'd consider a stage since this
place was mostly used for those traditional Japoness drama shows in
which they had men or marionettes (usually not during the same show)
dress up in kimonos and thick face paints.  However this establishment
also cantered to some of the more hardcore marionette lovers featuring
exotic marionettes from other countries.

Stifling a sigh, David contented himself to watch as Hikari emerged
from behind the red curtain.  There was a collective gasp from the
crowd as they drank in her beautiful silky red and white kimono as the
marionette shyly hid her face behind a fan.

David always made it a point to throw in a little local flavor into
Hikari's performances as they traveled.  He had heard that these
outfits, geishas they were called, were a popular fetish around here.
They were supposed to be refined yet sultry, professional yet coy.  As
much as it freaked him out, Hikari pulled it off really well.  She
responded genuinely to the audience as she carried out her routine.
She almost looked human.

David shivered.  God forbid that happen.

"Psst!"  David nearly jumped as his greased-covered brother magically
appeared next to him.  "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

Composing himself quickly, David casually dusted off his white suit
while trying to keep a decent distance from the soiled coveralls.  "Of
course it's a good idea."

Matt made a face and inclined his head.  "You sure, it's not, I don't
know kinda in bad taste?"

Snorting, David slapped his brother on the shoulder, though careful to
make sure his arm didn't make any contact with any dirt or grime.  "I
would hardly call it bad taste.  More like eccentric."

Matt wrinkled his eyebrows.  "Eccentric?"

Not really in the mood to argue with his brother about this, he just
offered him a noncommittal shrug.  "I'm just pandering to my
audience."

David noticed Matt's gaze flicker over the room of decrepit men
lustfully gazing upon Hikari.  Matt cringed.  "It seems so demeaning
to Hikari."

"You talk as if she was alive."  David commented incredulously and
considered the Maiden Circuit device Matt had mentioned to him
earlier.  "You didn't turn on that=E2=80=A6 circuit did you?  If she's full=
y
automated, there's no telling what she'll do!"

Matt fixed his brother a rather nasty glare and hissed.  "Why would I
do something that idiotic?  I just programmed the routine she's
supposed to run with a few interactive programs to keep things
interesting.  Anyway, activating the circuit would only bring unwanted
attention to us."

"Good."  David stated and returned his attention to the stage.  Hikari
had just shed her kimono, revealing the outfit she wore underneath.

Matt flinched as the starkly white outfit sparkled in the stage light.
 "Did we really need to do this?"

David smiled as the crowd began to hoot and whistle at Hikari's
skimpier costume.  "It seems to be a hit with everyone else in the
room."

Matt spared his brother a doubtful glance while Hikari pulled out a
cowboy hat and lasso from behind the curtain.  "I see, but a cowboy
geisha?  Isn't that a bit much?"

His smile only broadened when Hikari started prancing around the room
twirling her rope.  "Hardly."

As the brunette marionette bounced about, David could see a silver
jewel jostling around in her modest cleavage.  He thought it looked
very pretty, twinkling vibrantly in the low lights surrounding the
stage.  "Ah I see you incorporated my gift into Hikari's costume."

David nearly chuckled as Matt shyly rubbed the back of his head.
"Yeah, at first I was going to drill a hole through it so I could hang
it from a chain.  But it looked so beautiful that I just bent some
metal pieces around it and looped a chain through.  I hope it doesn't
look too much like a rush job."

"Oh hardly."  David encouraged, hoping this would distract Matt away
from his unfounded trepidation over Hikari's costume.  "It looks like
you did a marvelous job.  Especially on such short notice."

A burst of commotion from the entrance interrupted their
conversation.  Curious and concerned, David was on his way to
investigate when a small pink-haired child zipped past him looking
very focused and belligerent.  He had little time to ponder that as
the burly bouncer nearly bowled him over nearly ruining his good suit.
 David was about to voice a complaint when his brother exclaimed.

"What do you think you're doing!?"

All complaints flew out the window as David searched for his brother
only to see the pink-haired child climbing all over Hikari, reaching
for the marionette's necklace.  The marionette was doing an admiral
job of fending off the youth, but the pink-haired kid wasn't giving
up.

"Please don't touch!"  Hikari chirped playfully.  The child on the
other hand wasn't having any of that as he struggled.

"Give me the crystal!"  He shouted as he wrapped himself around
Hikari's waist.  "That's my mothers!"

By now the men in the room had jumped into action and were moving to
defend their entertainment for the day.  They did pay good money after
all.  However, David or Matt needed to do something before things got
out of hand.

Thankfully, Matt had managed to cut through most of the chaos and had
reached Hikari first.  Good, David thought as he pushed his way
forward, hopefully Matt would-

Without warning a bright flash of light blinded David followed by an
agonized scream which sounded so inhuman and high pitched that it hurt
his ears.  As the light faded, David surveyed the room.  It appeared
time had stopped as the rest of the men appeared frozen in place.
David would have entertained that possibility if it hadn't been for
everyone's uneven breathing.  Immediately he rushed towards his
brother and the marionette, to assess the damage to the merchandise.

However as he approached, he noticed that Hikari looked=E2=80=A6 frightened
and looking about frantically.  Wait, that wasn't in her routine.
David heart began to pound and broke out into a cold sweat and he
picked up the pace.  He could see the fear in her eyes as he
approached all but confirming David's worst fear.  Hikari's Maiden
Circuit had been activated.

He was about to reach the marionette when he felt something tangle in
his feet, forcing him to lose his balance.

"Ow!  Watch where your gong!"  Cried the unmistakable shrill voice of
the pink-haired punk.

David suppressed his sharp reply; he had bigger problems at the
moment.  Reaching his feet, he could see Hikari's eyes watering while
she clutched the shining crystal in her hands.  David frowned.  That
couldn't good.

"W-who are you?"  Hikari stammered as she shivered and shied away from
him.

"Hikari?!"  David cringed as Matt grabbed the shaken marionette.
This wasn't going to help them.

"Who are you?"  Hikari repeated her eyes wide.  She appeared ready to
take flight at any moment.  This situation needed to be handled with
great care!

"What's going on?"  The bouncer asked, holding up the thrashing
pink-haired punk.

"Put me down you over-grown ape!"  The youth shouted.

Behind the burly man, David could tell from the disgruntled murmuring
that the rest of the men were growing restless.  As much as David's
instincts were screaming at him not to leave Hikari with Matt, calming
a large group of displeased and unsatisfied customers was something
that needed to be dealt post haste.

"Oh, nothing.  Just a glitch with the software."  David calmly
replied, putting himself between the crowd and the marionette.

In his mind, David was already calculating the mounting losses this
debacle was going to cost him.  David could imagine that most of the
customers were going to demand a refund if they hadn't already.  Then
he grinned wickedly at the child.

"Unfortunately, because our little monkey here decided to use our
precious Hikari as a jungle gym, I doubt we'll have her operational in
time to finish the show."

The collective moan from the crowd made David smile smugly.  Maybe a
good old fashion beating would teach the kid a lesson.

The child glowered as he hung from the bouncer's large calloused
hand.  "That's total bull and you know it!  Give me back my mother's
crystal or you'll be sorry!"

The bouncer lifted the child to face him and flicked his nose.  "How
exactly are we gonna be sorry, squirt?"

The child didn't hesitate and took a bite full of the bouncer's
finger.  The burly man howled in pain and all matters of hell broke
loose.  Now free, the kid shot off like a pink tipped missile as
several men in the room drove for the small troublemaker.

"Stop that kid!"  Someone shouted.

"He's too fast!"

"Argh, my groin!"

Deciding to wait for the kid to come to him, David waited near Hikari
as Matt did=E2=80=A6 what the hell was Matt doing?  Sparing a glance behind
him, he could see his brother trying to talk to the marionette who by
now appeared scared out of its wits and backing away from the
mechanic.  Great, David thought, this couldn't get any worse.

"Put down Reenie NOW!"

But of course it would get worse, David mused darkly.

 A furious young blond man barreled into the melee, shoving aside any
one in his way.  A few of those shoved tried to retaliate only to be
clocked in the face.  David watched impressed, the young man had a
pretty decent right hook.  Unfortunately, the blond stranger's
aggression only made him more of a target for all those in the room.
Suddenly the young man found that the riot now turned on him but it
hardly seemed to slow him down.

With the grace and agility of a feline, the young man kept his
multitude of attackers at bay.  It was mesmerizing as David studied
the blond man's quick and fluid movements.  It was obvious the man was
practiced in combat as he easily danced about the room and stage while
the rest of the men followed him like a swarm of angry hornets.  At
some point someone grabbed a bamboo staff from God knows where and
swung at the blond stranger when his back was turned.

"Cindy!  Behind you!"  David jumped when the pink-haired punk popped
up beside him.  When did that happen?

Realization flashed across the stranger's face briefly as he ducked
under the swing by the barest of inches.  Unfortunately, several of
the other men had gotten a hold of more staffs and began whacking away
in earnest.  This time, the young man wasn't as lucky as his attackers
were able to land several blows and in the process ripping his shirt
near his collar.

"Oh no, Cindy!"  The young boy exclaimed.  Drawing his attention back
to the child, David seized the brat and holding him in place.

The youth's burning red irises glared at him as he struggled out of
David's grip.  "Let me go!"

Amazed at the brat's strength, David held on tighter and jerked the
child to let him know he meant business.  "I don't think so.  I'm not
letting you out of my sight until this debacle is over and you pay for
all the trouble you've caused.  Plus interest."

Speaking of investments, where was Hikari?  Scanning the room,
Hikari's long flowing auburn mane was no where to be found.

"Shit!"  He hissed as he searched frantically for the marionette.
Hikari was gone.  And so was Matt.

The blond man, on the other hand, was charging his way, bamboo stick in han=
d.

"Put her down!"  The young man commanded as his expression twisted in
fury.

Automatically, David dropped the child and began to retreat but
quickly found the end of the bamboo stick pressed against his throat.
David found himself face to face with the blond who was breathing
hard.  Curious and admittedly a little interested, David's eyes roamed
the young man's face and body.  He looked awfully attractive, though a
little too feminine for his tastes.  With his long blond hair now
splayed out and disheveled from all the fighting, he looked like a
crazed merchant trying to sell him land in New Texas.  Then his eyes
roamed further south to the man's heaving bosom and the cleavage
visible through the tear in his shirt.

David blinked and he panicked.  This wasn't a young man.  "You're=20
a marionette!"

The crazed machine frowned.  "Huh?"

Now this whole farce made sense.  This was the little brat's
marionette and it was programmed to guard him and bail him out
whenever he did something foolish.  Like now for instance.  Standing
straighter, David lock gazes with the machine and was disturb to see
they were fiery and full of emotion rather than dull and listless like
the pupils of most marionettes.

'This marionette has a Maiden Circuit.'  His conclusion only made his
knees tremble.  'Which means that this is going to call attention to
us from not only Japoness and Gartland, but also New Texas!  Dear God
we're screwed!'
=09
"Now we've got you!"

The blonde marionette pulled its lips into a tight line.  David
shivered; she looked positively lethal as she faced her opponents.
The patrons and the bouncers had the marionette surrounded and all of
them had their sticks tensed and ready.  It appeared the berserk
machine had no way out.  Of course the thought crossed David's mind
that the marionette had its back to him and he could take it by
surprise, but then again that bamboo looked like it would really hurt.

David waited with baited breath as the marionette and its opponents
faced off.  There was a tense moment as the two sides quickly
evaluated each other.  At any moment one of them was going to make
their mov-

Then pink-haired brat popped up in the middle, holding some heart-shaped bo=
x.
"Moon Crisis Make-up!"

Suddenly the room was once again bathed in blinding light, except this
time it was a warm pink glow.  When the glow faded before them all
stood a young girl dressed in a short skirt with pink and gold accents
that flared out from the bottom of a tight white bodice.  On the
girl's chest was a red bow and her hair was done up in strange looking
misshapen balls which had pig-tails sprouting out of them.

Where did this marionette come from?  Where did that pink-haired brat
go?  David was confused for a moment before he realized that the brat
must have used slight of hand to make the switch so he could get his
other marionette to back-up the blonde one.  Resourceful little pest,
he'd give him that.

"Damn it Reenie."  The blond marionette growled softly before dropping
its bamboo staff.  "You shouldn't have done that."

The smaller marionette carried on apparently missing the other
marionette's growl.  "I am Sailor Mini-Moon!  And in the name of the
Moon I will puniiiii-ah!"

Without warning, the blond marionette grabbed the other and dashed out
of the establishment while the rest of the patrons stared on in
disbelief.

A minute or two past before one of the patrons finally spoke, the
bamboo staff slacken in his hands.  "What the hell just happened?  Was
this part of the show?"

David felt a dribble of perspiration begin to slide down his face.
Not sure what else he could do, he just leaned back on what always
worked before.

"But of course."  David grinned, perhaps a little too widely, as he
offered them a shrug.

=09---------------------------------------------------
=09
This by far was the most humiliating thing she'd ever done.  Once
this was over, there was going to be reckoning.  Oh yes, Raye thought,
there definitely was going to be reckoning.

Stuffing her hands in the open sleeves of her priestess robes, Raye
gritted her teeth and willed her face to remain as neutral as the
other ornate lifeless dolls that obediently followed their masters.
Ahead of her, she could see the tall brunette's loose hair bob and
shimmy.

Earlier, Pluto had debriefed them of the situation.  They were in a
strange world where it didn't appear any women existed.  The only
forms of females were these androids that followed around the men.
The Time Guardian had instructed them to de-transform from their
Sailor Scout uniforms (since they would really stand out in their
flashy short skirts) and into their civilian clothing to see if they
could work up a disguise from there.

Raye cursed her luck for not changing out of her priestess robes which
did little to make her look less like those machines.  Lita on the
other hand was wearing jeans and a shirt which made it easier for the
brunette to alter her appearance to blend in better with the men who
roamed around this bizarre world made from a mish mash of futuristic
technology and medieval Japanese fashion.  All Lita had to do was
throw a robe from the assortment of robes they discovered in a closet
of the room they found themselves in.

"Enjoying yourself back there?"  Lita asked her in a low, soft tone.

Raye groused at that and momentarily shot her a heated glare but
cooled when someone passed them.

Once the coast was clear, Raye barked back.  "Oh yes.  I just love to
pretend I'm some perverted man's pretty little doll."

Lita twisted her head; a raised eyebrow clearly could be seen.  "Raye,
all men aren't perverts.  Take Ken for instance."  Raye suppressed a
sigh as her friend launched into that little fantasy world whenever
she spoke of her boyfriend.  "He's so gallant, sweet, and he would
never take advantage of me like that."

"That's because he's scared your shadow will beat him up."  Raye
mumbled under her breath.

Lita paused but didn't appear to hear her.  "You're just grumpy
because you haven't had a date in years.  I mean what about Chad?"

"What about him?"  She growled.  The mention of the boy's name
brought memories of last night to the surface and she really didn't
want to think about last night.  Unfortunately, the Amazon wasn't
someone who would take kindly to being reprimanded by her.  Hell
that's even if she could gather a clue for that matter.

"Haven't you noticed how sweet he is on you?"

The vitriol reply died in her throat as it sunk in.  She did know
he liked her because he put up with so much of her abuse, but now that
Grandpa was=E2=80=A6   Now Chad was all she had left and maybe she even los=
t
that if they couldn't get home.  Melancholy and sadness suddenly swept
over her and she found herself fighting back tears.  No, she refused
to give in.  She was stronger than that; she wasn't going to wallow in
her own self pity while everyone was still in danger.  Her temper
sparked up once again and anger exploded with her chest and glowed in
her eyes.

"I don't need a man to make me happy."  Raye hissed, it was all she
could do to keep from raising her voice.

Lita shrugged, nonchalant.  "Hey if you're more than happy satisfying
yourself then more power to ya.  Different strokes for different
folks."

Raye seethed.  What the fuck was wrong with the woman!?  She wanted
to scream at the dumbbell for brains but that would mean blowing their
cover.  Didn't that moron know that?!   Was she daring her to lose it
right here?  If she was then she had another thing coming!

"Ah, what a mighty fine marionette you have there, good sir."  Raye
nearly jumped out of her skin at the strange voice from behind her.

Much to Raye's relief, Lita had whisked around and immediately
engaged the stranger with the most masculine voice she had ever heard
from the brunette.  "Why yes she is."

Raye blinked.  Lita would almost definitely give Erica a run for her
money in terms of imitating a guy.

As Raye smoothed her features, she turned towards the man as stiffly
as possible which wasn't hard considering the shock had yet to wear
off.  When she finally turned all the way, she found a rather tall man
appraising her.  Immediately Raye swallowed down her outrage.  Her
pride demanded that she put this man in his place for daring to
evaluate her like some piece of meat, but she couldn't endanger Lita,
herself, or Pluto.  She glanced at the man's scabbard hanging loosely
from his hands, the hilt of the sword begging to be unsheathed at a
moment's notice.  Raye willed her expression to remain blank.

"She?"  The swordsman asked, sounding somewhat amused.  "You must be=20
very attached to your marionette though I can't say that I blame you."
 Leaning in closely, he  examined Raye's face.  She tried very not to
look startled as his squinty eyes twitched.  "'She' is very well made,
nearly flawless."

 "She is a piece of work."  Lita replied in her false, gruff male
tone.  Raye also detected some amusement in that tone and made a
mental note of that.

Raye stifled a gasp as the man gently snatched her arm and ran his
hand over her skin, his touch light.  "And the skin feels so real and
it's so warm."  He raised his head toward Lita, awestruck.
Fortunately for Raye, that meant he didn't notice the blush dusting
Raye's cheeks.  "How did you get that effect?"

Lita's mouth hung open for a moment until she glanced at Raye and
then smirked.  The smirked confused the priestess until her friend
replied.  "Ah she only gets warm when she hasn't been touched in
awhile."

Oooo, Lita was definitely going to get it later, blown cover or not.

"She's beautiful."  The swordsman voice took on a silky quality that
gave rise to inner warmth Raye wasn't used to.  It made her think of
all the times Chad had proclaimed his intentions to her.  Underneath
her irritation she showed, she had found it flattering, but she
wondered if he'd ever speak to her like this.  A part of wished he
would.

Meanwhile, the rest of her wished she could pound Lita's growing smirk
into oblivion.

"How much?"  He asked suddenly and it took all of Raye's resolve not
to appear alarmed.  Fortunately Lita took action.

"Uh, she's not for sale.  Sorry."  Lita smiled politely.

The swordsman disappointment was very evident and in a way made Raye
sad too.  Despite the fact the swordsman saw her as nothing more than
an obedient robot, it had felt=E2=80=A6 good to be wanted.  Her anger roare=
d
once more.  She DID NOT need a man to make her happy.  What she needed
were her friends.

'And most of them are probably gone to me for forever.'  Melancholy
rushed through her like a cold shower, the sickening sinking feeling
chilling her anger.

However a burst of power electrified her body dispelling everything.
She recognized it immediately; someone had activated the Silver
Crystal!  Lita's body twitched as well telling Raye that the tall
brunette felt it too.

"Did you feel that?" The swordsman asked, apparently he had felt it as
well.  "There must a powerful plasma storm forming."

"Uh, yeah."  Lita replied.  "Probably not a good idea to stay outside
then.  No sense in ruining our good walking clothes, huh?"

Raye wanted to slap her forehead.  Lita was a terrible liar.  However
despite all of her recent frustrations, she felt elated.  Serena was
here and there was no telling who else-

"Waaaaaaahh!  Let me go!"

Running towards them at incredible speed was a girl dressed only in a
skimpy white sparkling bikini and some gaudy leather chaps.  What kind
of woman would run around in public dressed like that?  Oh yeah, this
was a world dominated by men.  Now all was right in this screwed up
world.

Meanwhile, around the woman's neck a terrified man held on for dear
life, his skinny body flapping around the girl like a scarf.  However
as the woman flew by, Raye's caught a glimpse of the glowing stone
bouncing about her chest.

'How did she get the Silver Crystal?'  Raye's mind was racing.  'What
happened to Serena?'

Suddenly, she felt a tug on her sleeve as Lita rattled off her words
at the speed of a machine gun.  "Oh, will you look at the time!  If
you'll excuse me, sir, but my friend and I must be going.  'Kay?
Thanks!  Bye!"

As they put some distance between themselves and the swordsman, Raye
grabbed the transformation pen she had stored up her sleeve.

"We're gonna have to transform if we ever hope to catch up with her."
Raye huffed, the heavy weight of her priestess robes not aiding her at
all.

"Yea, I know."  Lita responded, her breathing hardly as labored.  "We
need to find a good hiding place first."

Just as the pair began scanning the area, someone screamed at them.

"Raye!  Lita!"

Behind them was sight for sore eyes.  The blonde Traveller and Reenie
were coming their way.  Raye couldn't help but smile.  It didn't
matter if she was blowing her cover by doing so.  At this point the
raven-haired girl didn't care; some of her friends were safe and they
were returning to her.

Though Raye did wonder idly why Cindy was carrying Reenie as well as
what reason Reenie had for being in her Sailor Scout uniform.  And she
was somewhat interested in the large, angry mob rumbling after them
like a testosterone tsunami.

'Ya know, truth be told, I really don't care anymore.'  The fleeting
thought ran through Raye's mind as pulled out the pen and shouted her
transformation incantation.  "Mars Crystal Power!"

Besides, she did vow there would reckoning.
        =09
=09---------------------------------------------------

She shouldn't be enjoying this so much, Pluto kept reminding herself.

Things were bleak; the Queen was missing, the others were probably
across this world or different dimensions even, and they were in a
foreign place and time that held numerous unknown dangers.  Yet, as
she jumped from one rooftop to another, she couldn't help but feel an
exhilarating rush knowing the fate of this world wasn't a burden on
her shoulders.

Well, she did have some burden, she needed to retrieve Queen Serenity
and the others, but for once in her life she didn't have to concern
herself with anything else.  And she felt a little guilt to admit that
felt really good.

But she was also a pragmatic person, as Time Guardian one had little
choice but to be one, and her mind had reviewed her options.  The most
optimistic possibility was that all of the girls had landed in this
dimension and there was a Traveller here that they could 'oblige' to
take them back home.  On the other hand, the worst case scenario was
Mars, Jupiter, and she was trapped here for the rest of their lives.

Long wisps of her deep green hair tinkled her nose as the wind batted
at it and tangling near her eyes.  Peering down at the busy streets
below, she watched the people of this bustle about.  Was it really
that bad to be trapped here?  Sure they were all men but they still
had their powers and Pluto was fairly certain they would not be at
this population's mercy.

Plus if this city was any indication, the rest of this civilization
was peaceful.  Though she did wonder how they kept up the population
being as they were all men.  She pondered that for a bit.  More than
likely they cloned each other since other means of reproduction seemed
somewhat implausible as well as rather repugnant to her.  Either way,
revealing to them that they were female might be received favorably.
Perhaps they could really do some good for this world.

'Why am I even entertaining this notion!?'  The Time Guardian shook
her head, hoping to shake loose these crazy thoughts.  'We *will* get
home.  It's my duty, no, my *purpose* to protect Serenity and her
world and I will do so by finding a way to get us back!'

Then she heard it as she hopped off another rooftop.  The soft echo
of feet landing a few buildings away that disappeared before she had a
chance to glance in that direction.  Mentally berating herself for
once again slacking in her duties, Pluto vowed once and for all to
never allow it to happen again.  Straining her senses, she attempted
to detect who or what was following her.

After a few more minutes, Pluto was able to determine that she was
being followed by a group of five or six fleet footed assassins
probably all wearing something akin to a bodysuit.  Since she hadn't
caught sight of any of them, she assumed they were hiding in the
shadows.  Since she couldn't catch them in the daylight, she concluded
they were likely dressed in black.

There was another one who was just as light on their feet, though this
one had loose fitting, rustling fabric which gave away their position.
 This one was moving rapidly to intercept but was further away than
the group following her.  It seemed that the group of assassins was
only doing resonance since they hadn't spread out to surround her.
Pluto wondered if there was a connection between them and the one
coming right for her.

Moving to a place that was easy for her to defend, the Time Guardian
stopped and readied her staff.  She kept her back turned and pretended
not to notice that the group had taken several positions around her,
yet not close enough to call her attention.  So far they only
observed, making no move to engage her.  Now assured she wasn't going
to be attacked by these assassins, Pluto waited patiently for her
company to arrive.

And she didn't need to wait long.

Mere moments later a woman dressed in elaborate red robes landed in
front of her a small distance away.  The woman's intense gaze regarded
her critically as she aimed the blade on the end of her staff at the
Time Guardian.

"I am Tamasaburou of Japoness Elite Imperial Guard.  Identify yourself
intruder."  The twin curls of her purple bangs bobbed about her
temple.

Pluto schooled her face, appearing as emotionless as her combatant.
She was intrigued, this one didn't sound like a machine.

"Identify yourself, intruder."  The woman ordered more forcefully,
thrusting the blade for added effect.  "I will not ask again."

Allowing a frown, Pluto didn't appreciate being threatened.  As she
contemplated her next move, she felt a strong pulse of energy.  It was
unmistakable; someone had activated the Silver Crystal.  Her
interrogator, Tamasaburou, must have felt it too since she gasped.
The assassins quickly left the scene a chorus of quiet footfalls
following in their wake.  Pluto could only assume they felt it as
well.

Tamasaburou regained her composure and narrowed her eyes as Pluto
repositioned her staff.  "You will go nowhere marionette.  You have
much to answer for."

Pluto let her eyes drag over to the Imperial Guard and replied dryly.
"I answer to no one but my Queen."

Then she raised her staff and teleported to where the Silver Crystal,
and hopefully her Queen, awaited.

-End of Part 10-

Author's Notes:
Overall, I wasn't too pleased with the chapter.  I really felt I could
have phrased things better or repeated certain ones too often.  I
really need to expand my vocabulary.  Also, this one is somewhat
rougher with no pre-reader so if you happen to catch any mistakes let
me know.

Soundtrack for Chapter 10:
Ghost of Nihil =E2=80=93 gwarek2 by Aphex Twin
The Ocean Breeze vs the Bitter Cold =E2=80=93 Bleed Like Me by Garbage
Calling of the Silence =E2=80=93 Fish =E2=80=93 Silent Cruise from the Ghos=
t in the
Shell: Stand Alone Complex OST
In Dreams =E2=80=93 Enjoy by Bjork
Touring the Counsule Building =E2=80=93 Circles by Meat Beat Manifesto
Pancakes =E2=80=93 Milk Tea by Plus Tech Squeeze Box
Cindy's Battle =E2=80=93 Because We Can by Fat Boy Slim
Raye's Reckoning =E2=80=93 Beelzebeat by Orbital
Hopping the Rooftops =E2=80=93 Walkabout by The Sugarcubes

Disclaimer:
All original characters are owned and copyrighted by Bastion (c) 2008.
Sailor Moon is owned by Naoko Takeuchi
Saber Marionette J is owned by Satoru Akahori
Nausicaa is owned by Hayao Miyazaki

Bastion