Chapter III: Evens Up.
    Standing there, Christian looked into the sea. An artist? Why was that image so strong in his mind? Most of his life was a blur, but he remembered drawing things. Also a single person stood out in his mind, but who was it? He couldn’t be sure. He then spun around; there was that girl again. That girl she was the one that caused his head to hurt so much. What was her name? He was about to approach her, when the little girl from earlier bumped into him.
    “What do you want!” He shouted, the girl shrunk back, grasping her barrette.
    “I just wanted to ask if you had anyone to talk with.” She asked, in a sweet innocent endearing way.
    “I just want to be left alone.” He said. Christian turned and walked away. The small girl looked perplexed, and ran to see Amy.

    Amy glanced over her shoulder. “Hotaru!  What is the problem?”
    “I… I’m scared! That strange man us scaring me.”
    “Which one?”
    “That one… Where’d he go?”
    “I don’t know, maybe… no never mind.”

     “Greg?” Amy asked, the ship had docked, and everyone had gone to his or her rooms. In the morning they would go to the first session of the game. Lita had gone to bed, and Hotaru passed out a few moments after touching the mattress. Amy however couldn’t sleep. With Ms. Haruna out, she had decided to sneak in and a get a few words with Greg.
    “Oh, isn’t he adorable.” She said out loud to no one. Greg was asleep, and as far as she knew he was a deep sleeper. “I’m so sorry Greg, but I just don’t feel confident in our relationship, and how we are. Why can’t we ever be normal?”
    As the silence responded, Amy walked over and looked down on Greg. She had been there when his vision had come, and he had been avoiding her since. She looked around, to double make sure no one was there, and kissed Greg on the cheek lightly. Blushing furiously at her actions, she darted out of the room.
    The psychic sat up. Amy had kissed him. He wouldn’t get any sleep now!
 
    The day of the competition Ms. Haruna had everyone arrive a full hour early. This didn’t bother Amy, since she got up early anyway. But Lita was drinking cup after cup of coffee to stay awake. Hotaru had long since fallen asleep again. Greg had shown up, but quickly left.
    Amy couldn’t explain why, but she had felt so urged to kiss him last night, and since no one knew about it she felt that she was ok. Then she noticed Lita running up to her. “Hey… AMY!” Lita shouted, jogging in place. “Want to go for a little run before we start the game? I hear this thing is BORING! Whew, I am so fired up!”
   “Lita, I think you’ve had enough coffee.”
   “Nonsense! What is this about too much coffee! You can never, ever have too much of a good thing.”
    “Lita, I suggest that you calm down. And quickly. The competition is going to start in about twenty minutes. Where is Greg?”  Amy asked, Lita gave her a knowing wink.
    “Why should I tell you… hmmm? After all, you don’t like coffee.”
    “Lita, just where is Greg?”
    “I don’t know… maybe there, maybe here? Anywhere you want him?”
    Amy did not find it funny. “Lita! Wake up Hotaru, I’ll find Greg.”
    “If that’s what you want!” Lita said, as she began to jog over to the small girl. She was sleeping peacefully in her little chair, her barrette falling down over her eyes. Amy sighed, and left to find Greg.
    “HOTARU!” Lita shouted into the girl’s ears, which woke her up with a shout. “Wake up, we’ve got a show to do! Are you feeling hot, hot, HOT?  I am!”
    “Lita, are you ok?”
    “How come everyone keeps asking me that? I… am… fine.”  Lita said. She went and examined the stage.

    A little way away, three other girls stood. They watched those two closely. The smallest one turned to the other two.  “Could you two… um… well… drain them while I… find the piece?” Gina nodded, and Rose began to draw upon energy. Casey disappeared in a flash.
    “You two there! Prepare yourselves!” Rose shouted.
    Gina smirked, as a deep green knife appeared in her hand. “Now, you two can come along quietly, or…”
    “Jupiter… Star Power!” Lita shouted, not letting them finish their sentence. In a brilliant flash of thunder and lightening she was now, the Sailor Soldier of the Planet Jupiter.
    “Saturn…. Star Power!” A small light display lasting for but a few seconds disguised Hotaru, as she became Sailor Saturn.  She leaned upon her glaive
    “It can’t be!” Rose cried out. “It was a trap! Curses! You all die here.”
     Gina nodded a solemn agreement. With that, a huge green ball shot towards the two Scouts. Lita picked up Hotaru, and jumped away from it in the nick of time. The ground where they had stood just moments before now showed severe damage.
    “You!  What are you doing here?” Lita cried out. The small electricity rod extended from her tiara. “I’m warning you… don’t come any closer!”
    Saturn picked her glaive up, and dusted herself off. “Yeah! Otherwise Jupiter will knock you out! Right?”
    “Sure! Because I am hot, hot, HOT!” Lita cried as the lightening condensed around her.
   As the bolt flew towards Rose, the girl barely managed to move aside. The second small bolt however struck the succubus’s leg. She roared aloud in pain, and fell to a knee.
    “Sailor Jupiter, don’t think you can escape. Next time!” Rose shouted, as she disappeared. Gina made a few more exploding balls, and sent them flying towards the two.
    “Silence Wall!” Hotaru shouted, as a soundless wall surrounded them. In brilliant flashes of light along the wall each ball exploded. The two scouts however remained unhurt.

    “Come on Future-Seer! Where is the piece?” Casey asked, as another dark blast knocked Greg down. Greg winced in pain, he tried to stand, but his sight was rapidly going dark.
     “Mercury Bubbles, Blast!” Sailor Mercury shouted hoping to reveal her positions to Casey, so that the girl would refrain from attacking. It worked. The small succubus looked around, as the fog fell around her.
    “Sailor Mercury! You came! Where are the others?” Greg shouted.
    “How should I know?” Amy said, as she ran a scan to find the girl. She locked on, and was preparing her attack. Suddenly though, someone gripped her shoulder. The hand was strong, and it tossed her aside.
    “Well, well, well! If it isn’t Sailor Mercury!” Jedite growled through the fog.
    “Jedite!”
     “Yes, now listen here, as nice as I would like to be, I can’t. If you think I’ll let you girls get the piece you are sorely mistaken. Sailor Mercury, I warn you and Sailor Moon… do not anger me.” And with that Jedite disappeared as eerily as he came. The fog lifted moments later. Standing there was not a single person other than Greg. Amy stood, and reverted back to her outfit.
     “Amy… what is he talking about?” Amy didn’t respond though, she just sat there dumbfounded, and rather scared.
 

     Professor Tomoe watched the screen, his smile spreading ear to ear. “Come on, you can do it girl!” He whispered aloud. Dr. Mizuno was reclined back, watching not nearly as intensely as the Professor was.
     “Don’t you feel that you are too into this?” The doctor asked him.
    Professor Tomoe looked back, and then glanced over his glasses at the doctor. “Do explain.”
    “Simply that it is just a game. Whether or not our team wins is nothing, the fact is that it is good for their confidence, and academic record.”
    “Yes, but if they can win, shouldn’t they try?” He countered.
    “Quite right Professor.” She said.
    Tomoe reclined back, and smiled. “Dr. Mizuno, there is still much to learn about our children, isn’t there?”
    “Where did that come Professor?”
    “Simply an observation. My daughter I sent there because she needed her own sense of confidence, her own stand… a security object. Why then did you send your daughter?”
    “I didn’t, she chose to go.” Dr. Mizuno said, watching as Amy answered another question. The score was that Juben High School was finally ahead. Dr. Mizuno figured Amy wouldn’t say another answer until they were behind again.
     “So, are you telling me you wouldn’t have told your daughter to go if she had said no?”
     “Exactly, she won’t learn if she doesn’t want to.”
     “True, shall we meet for dinner tomorrow night for more discussion?” Tomoe asked. Dr. Mizuno simply smiled, and nodded, as a commercial began.
 
Chapter IV: Cheap Make, Easy Break.

  1