Sunday – a day in which most people take time out of their busy lives from work, school, or whatever and spend time with their family or loved ones. And in fact, most people were taking the time to do so; some shops were closed, and school, like on every Sunday, was closed. But for some people, Sunday was just another day… only without school.
I don’t understand why all the boys in the world would leave such a pretty girl like me alone on a Sunday! Usagi thought as she sighed and stared longingly at her reflection in a shop window as she strolled aimlessly down one of the streets of downtown Tokyo. All her friends were out doing something: Minako was out shopping with Makoto and Rei, while Ami and Ryoku were out on a date. Usagi had declined coming, but told them that she might consider joining them later, while hoping that she would happen upon Mamoru as she walked down some of the streets of downtown Tokyo. So far, she was having very little luck.
As she turned to continue were wandering, Seijuro happened to spot her from a short distance behind her. Now I will certainly take Usagi-san’s love, he thought as he started to follow her.
In a library not too far away, Mamoru was skimming through one of the many books, looking to see if was interesting enough to check out. As he was scanning over his prospective book, Natsumi watched him from a discreet distance away while pretending to read a book she had pulled at random from a shelf. At a glance, she looked like she was merely looking over a book, like any other library patron. However, if anyone cared enough to make a further inspection, there were two things that gave Natsumi away. One thing was the fact that Natsumi didn’t look like the type of person to be interested in bodybuilding, and the second thing was that the book was upside-down anyway. Not that she cared anyway, since Mamoru had finally put the book he was looking at away.
Now I will certainly take Mamoru-sama’s love, she thought as she walked over to him. “Oh, Mamoru-sama, fancy meeting you here.”
“Natsumi-san,” Mamoru said as he noticed her talking to him.
“What an amazing coincidence this is!” she exclaimed as she grabbed onto his arm.
“H-hey!” he said uncomfortably as he sweatdropped.
It looked like it was going to be another one of those Sundays….
“Usagi-san, what a surprise, bumping into you today,” Seijuro said with a smile. “I didn’t expect it.” After he had… bumped into her, he had invited her to join him for drinks at the café that was just across the street from where he had bumped into her. Usagi was about to decline, but when he mentioned food as well….
“Me either,” Usagi said as she happily munched on some sandwiches.
“What an amazing coincidence, meeting you,” he continued smoothly. “It must be a miracle.”
“Yeah, yeah…,” she replied as she reached for another sandwich.
“Hey, let go of my arm, will you?”
Usagi paused as she recognized that voice.
“You’re very shy, aren’t you?”
Seijuro paused as he recognized that voice, while Usagi frowned slightly.
“Mamoru-san?” Usagi said as she turned to see Mamoru walking past them with Natsumi still hanging onto his arm.
“Natsumi?” Seijuro said as he stood up.
“What?” Mamoru said as he stopped and turned to see Usagi and Seijuro sitting at a café table nearby. “Oh, if it isn’t Meatball-head.”
“Big brother?” Natsumi said in a slightly upset tone. “Are you on a date with Tsukino-san?”
“I thought you were going to the library,” Seijuro replied as he glanced from her to Mamoru and back to her.
“I thought you were going to be studying at a friend’s,” Natsumi retorted.
Usagi and Mamoru exchanged glances, each one confused and wondering what exactly they had gotten themselves into with this bickering pair of siblings.
“Wait, Natsumi!” Seijuro shouted as he caught up to her just outside their apartment. “Are you really in love with that man?”
“What about you, Ail?” she asked, intentionally calling him by his real name, then stalked away toward their apartment, leaving Seijuro to chase after her again.
As Natsumi and Seijuro entered their apartment, they both changed back into Ann and Ail, and entered the chamber where they kept the Doom Tree.
They both stopped short as they noticed the tree’s current sickly state. Many of the leaves had faded into a pale lavender color and were dropping off the tree. Both Ail and Ann stared in complete disbelief; the tree hadn’t looked this bad when they had left this morning….
“What’s happening?” Ann asked without taking her eyes from the tree.
“This is impossible,” Ail said as he tried to think of how the tree could’ve gotten to its current withered state.
“It’s all because you’ve neglected it in favor of Tsukino-san,” Ann remarked snidely.
“I could say the same to you, Ann,” Ail shot back.
Ann frowned at Ail, then sighed as she hung her head worriedly. “If the Makaiju withers, what will we do for energy?”
Ail sighed as well, but nodded. “We need to give it energy in large quantities to save its life,” he said as he stared back at the tree concernedly.
After escaping the embarrassing situation between Seijuro and Natsumi, Usagi happened upon a small gathering watching a live action show that had just started performing at that location a few days ago. Much to her surprise and delight, it was a Sailor Moon show. The performer on stage was wearing a large head mask that vaguely resembled her, but the resemblance hardly bothered her.
“It’s a Sailor Moon show!” Usagi said happily to Luna, who had decided to sit on Usagi’s shoulder after she had caught up to her. “I’m really popular!”
Luna took one look at the display and smirked. “It must be a comedy show,” she remarked.
“Luna!”
As Usagi rebuked her smart-mouthed black cat, the Sailor Moon show continued while all the young children watched eagerly.
“I’m the Sailor Warrior fighting for love and justice, Sailor Moon,” the performer said as she went through the familiar poses that Sailor Moon always did before a battle. “On behalf of the Moon….” The performer paused significantly and looked at the audience as if giving them their cue.
“I’ll punish you!” all the children exclaimed at the same time, finishing the line.
“Sailor Moon’s really become famous, eh?” Umino said as he and Naru watched the Sailor Moon show from within the large crowd of children.
“Yeah,” Naru agreed as she smiled. “Sailor Moon’s really popular now. I’m proud of her.”
Umino grinned and adjusted his glasses. “Yes. Me, too.”
As the Sailor Moon show continued, the sky suddenly began to darken. As everyone glanced upward to see what was happening, a strange robed, six-armed creature suddenly appeared overhead, sitting on top of what seemed to be a large flower petal.
“What’s that strange thing?” Unimo said as he stared and adjusted his glasses again.
“Joy! Anger!” the figure said as its head rotated to display a face similar to its last one, only this one was angry instead happy. “Pity!” it said as its head rotated again, showing a sad face. “Enjoyment!” it finished as its head made a final rotation. “Yamandaka!”
“What’s that?” the performer wearing the large Sailor Moon head said as the Cardian began to fling large flower petals around below it. As the petals touched the people below, the energy of each victim began to gather into the stem of the large flower that the Cardian rode. As all of the victims began to collapse, the Cardian began to laugh as it disappeared.
After the Cardian disappeared, Usagi came out from where she had taken cover and rushed out to check on the children. “Everyone’s had their energy stolen!” she said to Luna as she took in the scene. Large flower petals had attached themselves to their victims, some covering their faces, but most touching on either the head or the back. The petals seemed to have stopped draining energy, but Usagi and Luna carefully avoided touching them, should the same thing happen to them.
“The enemy has really struck hard this time,” Luna commented impassively as she checked on one of the many comatose victims.
Usagi nodded, then blinked in surprise when she saw Umino and Naru lying unconscious among the mass of victims. “Naru-chan! Umino!” She ran over to check on her friends.
“I can’t believe that girl’s been attacked again,” Luna remarked as she went to join Usagi.
Usagi said nothing in reply.
Ail and Ann watched as their Cardian, Yamandaka, hovered in a circle above the Doom Tree as it showered all of the energy that it had collected onto the tree as if watering a normal tree. Normally, when the Doom Tree received its energy, it would start to grow healthy again; its leaves would return to their normal healthy reddish color from their withered lavender color and the tree itself would look more alive. However, as the Cardian watered the tree with its stolen energy, the tree remained the same.
“Strange,” Ail murmured, baffled at the lack of any noticeable effect. “It doesn’t work.
“This way doesn’t work anymore,” Ann concluded after Yamandaka had ceased its work. “It’s possible that….”
“Perhaps the Makaiju can’t use Earth energy after all,” Ail assumed after thinking over the problem.
“Oh no!” Ann gasped, wide-eyed with worry. “What should we do?”
The following day started out almost the same as usual. School started and everyone quickly made their way to their classes before the teachers began their ritual morning roll call. However, in Sakurada Haruna’s class, there was a slight difference in the usual morning roll call.
“Umino-kun, Osaka-san and Ginga-san are absent,” Haruna said as she glanced down at her roll sheet noting the three absences with slight concern.
“Her brother, Ginga Seijuro, is absent, too,” Usagi added from her seat.
Haruna glanced up from her role sheet and looked at her. “Oh, Tsukino-san, how did you know that?”
Usagi laughed slightly as she put a hand behind her head in chagrin. “Well, I’ve got a special interest.”
“Why do we have to go visit them with you?”
Usagi, Ami, Makoto and Ryoku had all stopped just outside of the apartment complex where Natsumi and Seijuro lived. Makoto was still slightly upset at being talked into going with Usagi, but at least she had decided to come.
“Be sociable and don’t complain,” Usagi chided.
“At least, not loud enough for anyone to hear you,” Ryoku added, earning a disapproving stare from Usagi and a small giggle from Ami.
“Anyway, how are Naru and Umino?” Ami asked.
“Any changes?” Ryoku asked as well.
“Because they had so much energy stolen, it’ll take them a while to recover,” Usagi told them quietly as they entered the building and made their way through the complex to their destination.
“It seems that the enemy has become more aggressive,” Ryoku remarked tonelessly as Usagi reached up and rang the doorbell.
“Really?” she asked, glancing back at him after ringing the doorbell. She was about to say something else when the door opened. “Hello!” she said when she saw that Seijuro had answered the door.
“Oh, Usagi-san,” Seijuro said in surprise with a large smile. “I’m so moved!” Behind him, Natsumi lightly coughed into her hand as she stared at them.
As Usagi glanced from Seijuro to Natsumi she noticed that they were bothing wearing the exact same violet shirts and that Seijuro’s trousers and Natsumi’s skirt were the exact same shade of white. “Hey, you’re dressed alike!” she exclaimed as she realized the fact. “That’s strange for siblings.”
“Yes, it’s more like you were a couple,” Makoto added.
Seijuro blinked as he glanced back to Natsumi, then turned back to the others and grinned again. “Really?” he asked as he shrugged ambiguously. “Natsumi and I get along better than most siblings since we’ve been alone since losing our parents long ago.”
Makoto and Ryoku shared a look. “Really?” he remarked. “That is exactly what happened with Mako-chan and myself.”
“So, how did you lose your parents?” Makoto asked.
Seijuro seemed to be searching for something to say, but Natsumi beat him to it. “That is none of your business,” she said curtly.
“Oh?” Makoto asked.
“What do you want?” she continued testily. “Coming by so suddenly; are you trying to be rude?”
“No, we’re not!” Makoto retorted indignantly. “Usagi was worried about you.”
“Mako-chan!” Ami said, trying to calm her down. Makoto glanced at her once, then turned away from Natsumi toward the way they had come from.
“Honestly, we shouldn’t have bothered,” she stated. “Come on, Usagi-chan.” Usagi reluctantly nodded and was about to leave when Seijuro interrupted them.
“Now, don’t waste your trip,” he told them genially. “Will you have some tea?”
“Big brother!” Natsumi said in an upset tone, but Seijuro wasn’t about to be swayed.
“Please, come in,” he said as he waved them inside. Natsumi angrily tossed her head and stalked away while the others slowly made their way inside. Seijuro led them to the living room where he invited them to have a seat while he went to make the tea. Since the couch in the living room could only seat three, Ryoku had elected to remain standing.
There was a smaller couch across from the others, but Ryoku decided not to sit there, since that was where Natsumi had sat down when Seijuro brought them into the living room. Instead of getting up and leaving, she had stubbornly opted to remain in her seat rather than leave. Ryoku decided that Natsumi would rather sit by herself, so the seat beside her remained empty. Maybe he could go look for a chair or sit on the floor….
In the kitchen, Seijuro began to hum to himself as he cleaned some dishes while the water was boiling for the tea. All the time that he cleaned the dishes, he continued to smile, all the time not knowing why.
“What is this feeling?” he murmured to himself as he set down the glass he was drying and reached for another.
Meanwhile, Usagi was making very little headway in trying to make small talk with Natsumi, who was being very disagreeable. Makoto was sitting with her arms folded, pointedly ignoring Natsumi, which was understandable since they were still on slightly unfriendly terms since that time when Makoto had chased after Seijuro. Ami was just sitting quietly, wondering if there was any way to salvage this goodwill visit, while letting her right hand rest on Ryoku’s shoulder, almost as if she could draw upon his infinite supply of patience and tolerance. Ryoku had finally chosen to sit on the floor between Makoto and Ami and was merely taking everything in stride. After all, this was really Usagi’s visit. They were just here for support.
“What’s the matter?” Usagi asked Natsumi.
Natsumi pointedly turned away from Usagi in the same manner as Makoto had turned away from Natsumi. “Nothing’s the matter. Why?”
“You haven’t been to school,” she said concernedly. “Everyone’s worried.”
“Worried? Why?”
“Why?” Usagi repeated, blinking uncertainly at Natsumi’s reaction. “Well, we’re your friends. You might have been hurt, or you might be sick. It’s only natural. If you stay at home, you’ll get behind in your studies.”
Natsumi stared at them for a moment, looking at them as if seeing something that didn’t make any sense. “I don’t understand,” she said finally. “What we do has nothing to do with any of you.”
Makoto suddenly stood up. “I’ve had it,” she stated irritably. “I’m leaving.”
“Calm down, Mako-chan,” Ryoku said calmly as he stood up as well. “We will leave as soon as Usagi-chan is ready…. Where is she?” he said as soon as he noticed that she had already left the couch.
“Say, is this your study?” Usagi’s voice called out from the back. Natsumi suddenly leaped out of her seat and rushed toward where Usagi’s voice had come from. The others exchanged glances and followed.
As Usagi looked over the strange door, she noticed that there was no doorknob. As she stepped toward the door, the door began to slowly open. “Oh, an automatic door!” she exclaimed in surprise as she waited for the door to fully open.
“Stop!” Natsumi exclaimed as she hurried toward Usagi, but Seijuro had already made it to the door and had pressed a button to stop the door and reverse the door’s opening.
“It’s such a mess,” he explained as he turned to Usagi. The tray of drinks was sitting in his right arm. “I couldn’t let you see it.”
“But, Mako-chan is a genius at housecleaning,” Usagi told him, nonplussed at being kept from the room. “She can help you clean it up. Right, Mako-chan?”
“It’s fine,” Natsumi said flatly as she held Usagi’s school bag out to her. “Anyway, you’re really bothering us. Please leave right now. Well?” she continued after Usagi took back her bag. “Well?”
“Let’s go, Usagi,” Makoto said, urging her to leave with the others. “Hurry.”
“Well, see you later,” Usagi said contritely as she backed out of the apartment.
“Usagi-san, won’t you have some tea?” Seijuro asked almost disappointedly as he held out the tray he was still carrying.
“I will next time,” she said as the door closed behind her.
As Natsumi and Seijuro watched the others leave from the balcony, Usagi paused as she waved goodbye to them. Natsumi turned away, but Seijuro gave a small wave of his hand in return.
“Ail, why are you being so kind?” Natsumi asked.
“Ann, in your heart, isn’t something warm boiling up?” he asked as he stared skyward. The sky was darkening and the Moon was already out. He began to gaze contemplatively at it while he mulled over the events that had happened that day.
“What are you talking about?” she retorted flatly.
“I don’t know…,” he said broodingly. “I’ve never felt anything like it before.”
The next day, the alarm in Usagi’s room went off at seven in the morning exactly. Luna woke up from her rest and turned toward the bed. As always, it was up to her to wake Usagi up. It always seemed that the alarm was more for her sake than Usagi’s.
“Usagi-chan, wake up!” Luna said as she jumped onto the bed in order to wake her up. As she landed on top of the bed, she paused in surprise. “Usagi-chan?”
Usagi wasn’t there.
Furthermore, her bed was already set and her pajamas were lying on her bed… folded.
“Huh? She’s gone already?” the black cat wondered in astonishment. Well, there was only one thing to do in a situation like this.
Luna went back to sleep.
“Come on,” Usagi said cheerily to Natsumi. “Go.”
“You show up to annoy us this early in the morning?” Natsumi muttered as she stood in the doorway wearing the same outfit that she wore yesterday.
“Now, now,” Usagi chided, ignoring Natsumi’s harsh tone. “I know you’re upset, but come with me anyway!”
“Usagi-san, you came to see us again?” Seijuro said in surprise as he came into view of the doorway. He was in his pajamas, holding his cup and toothbrush while a towel was draped around his neck.
“I came to pick up Natsumi,” she told him.
“It’s inconvenient, Big Brother,” Natsumi complained with her arms folded indignantly.
“Well, since you went to the trouble to come visiting, have some cake and meat buns,” he offered.
“Yes, thank you!” Usagi said happily as she walked inside past Natsumi.
“Big Brother!” Natsumi exclaimed, then sighed in vexation.
As soon as Seijuro had changed and started making tea again, Natsumi joined him in the kitchen while Usagi happily ate some cake and meat buns.
“Why did you say a thing like that?” she all but demanded.
“I don’t know,” Seijuro replied uncertainly.
“For some reason…,” Natsumi began, frowning uncertainly. “You’re been acting strange lately.”
As Natsumi and Seijuro talked in the kitchen, Usagi quietly snuck her way back to the forbidden door. “Even though I’ve been told not to, I still want to look…,” she whispered to herself as she reached toward the buttons that she saw Seijuro push the last time she was there. She grimaced and smacked herself lightly on the head. “Gee, Usagi, you’re a bad girl!” With that out of the way, she pushed the button to open the door. After the door completely opened, she could see nothing but darkness inside.
“It’s so dark…,” Usagi murmured quietly as she slowly stepped inside. After she had stepped all the way inside, a sudden flash of light flooded the room, almost blinding her. As she threw up her arms over her eyes, some of the branches and vines of the Doom Tree reached out to her and latched onto her. Usagi turned and tried to run out of the room, but the tree had a tight hold on her. As she tried her hardest to escape, she did the only thing she could think of at a time like this.
She screamed.
From inside the kitchen, Seijuro and Natsumi gasped as they heard Usagi’s scream and took off for the Doom Tree’s chamber. As Usagi struggled to free herself from the hold of the Doom Tree from outside the chamber, Seijuro quickly hit the button to close the chamber door. As the door closed, the tree reluctantly release Usagi, allowing her to finally collapse to her hands and knees.
“Usagi, are you all right?” Seijuro asked concernedly as he knelt down at her side. Natsumi merely glared at Usagi with her hands on her hips.
“What’s in that room?” Usagi gasped breathlessly.
“Nothing,” Seijuro replied quickly, flinching almost imperceptibly. “Just an experiment.”
“What kind of experiment?” she asked, turning to look at him as she slowly tried to catch her breath.
“Well, some botany,” Seijuro replied offhandedly.
“Really?”
“Tsukino-san!” Natsumi exclaimed, very annoyed. “Snooping into other people’s rooms is the worst!”
“I’m sorry,” Usagi apologized, bowing her head penitently.
“Anyway, we’re staying home today, as well,” Natsumi informed her. “Will you please leave?”
Usagi nodded and left the apartment. As she left the building, she turned and waved up to Seijuro, who was watching her leave. “The two of you, come tomorrow for sure, okay?”
Seijuro nodded, then turned to go back into the apartment when he stopped suddenly. Again, he thought with some confusion. Something warm flowing in my heart.… As he entered the apartment, he headed over to the Doom Tree’s chambers, where Natsumi was. When he reached where Natsumi was standing, he stopped and followed her gaze down to where a small green sprout had suddenly grown from out of the trunk of the Doom Tree.
“What is this?” she murmured wonderingly. “What do you think, Ail?”
“Perhaps it is finally responding to the energy we gave it,” he speculated as he turned to Natsumi.
“But only now…,” she said as she glanced up at the tree while grinning. “That’s strange.”
“Only now?” he repeated with a slight frown.
“I mean, only after Tsukino-san visited us,” she continued with a malicious grin. “Tsukino-san’s energy is responsible.”
“I don’t believe it,” he said flatly.
“If we drain all her energy and give it to the Makaiju, maybe it will revive,” she continued as if Seijuro hadn’t spoken.
“Wait!”
“Are you opposed?” she asked, turning to look at him.
“Let me try one thing first,” he requested. “Yamandaka! Give this new bud energy and nurture it,” he ordered over his shoulder as he pointed toward the sprout.
“What are you doing?” she asked, confused.
“We will see if this makes the bud grow more,” he told her.
“I wonder if that will work,” she said skeptically as the Cardian began to feed the new sprout energy. As the energy was infused into the bud, it began to wither and die.
“No!” Seijuro exclaimed in disbelief.
“Our precious new bud!” Natsumi also exclaimed, wide-eyed in shock.
Just as they were bemoaning the loss of their new bud, a low moaning sound suddenly filled the chamber. Both Seijuro and Natsumi stared at the Doom Tree, but the sound didn’t repeat itself.
“Just now…,” Natsumi whispered quietly in astonishment. “The Makaiju’s voice?”
“Do you think a tree can speak?” Seijuro replied with an attempt at sarcasm, but fell short due to his own astonishment.
“Ail,” Natsumi began, her astonishment slowly turning into apprehension. “What is the Doom Tree? What exactly is this Makaiju?
“What do you mean?” he asked. “It’s an ancient tree that stores energy.”
“Only that?”
“It changes the energy it absorbs into energy we can feed on,” he continued.
“Only that?”
“Yes. Only that.”
Natsumi glanced up worriedly at the Doom Tree. She hoped that Seijuro was right. She didn’t want to think about the possibility of him being wrong.
After class, Usagi, Ami, Makoto and Ryoku all met underneath one of the trees on the school grounds. Usagi was telling the others about what happened during her second visit to Seijuro and Natsumi’s apartment.
“You went again this morning?” Makoto asked in surprise.
“That’s generous, Usagi-chan,” Ami said as Usagi laughed in chagrin.
“That’s not exactly what I would call it,” Ryoku remarked dryly.
“Usagi-chan!” Ami suddenly gasped as she pointed at her. “Your head!”
“Don’t move,” Ryoku said quietly as he reached for a stick, then swung it at Usagi’s head with the same precision as he used with his swords.
As Usagi flinched while the stick passed over her head, a small piece of what seemed to be a vine flew off of Usagi’s head. Ryoku gestured for the others to stay back as he slowly reached forward with the stick to poke at the vine. Before he could reach it, the vine started to move by itself. The girls gasped as they jerked back while Ryoku instinctively drew one of his swords and pointed it at the crawling vine.
“What’s this?” Makoto said apprehensively as she watched her brother deftly skewer the bottom part of the stem with the sword to so he could pick it up without touching it.
“What an eerie thing…,” Ami breathed nervously.
“I will need a glass container to hold this… thing,” he told them calmly.
“I’ll go get one,” Ami said and left to search for one.
“We’d better call the others about this,” Makoto said as she stared uneasily at the vine. It had stopped moving, but she wasn’t about to get any closer to it.
“My thoughts exactly,” he said with a slight nod.
After school had ended, everyone met at Hikawa Shrine to learn about the strange vine that they had found on Usagi. Ryoku placed the vine, now in a glass beaker from one of the chemistry classrooms, on the porch of the main shrine building in front of Luna and Artemis, then sat down next to it. Ami took a seat next to him, while the others stood.
“Luna, do you know what this is?” Ami asked.
“If it’s what I think, it’s terrible,” she said as she stared down at the dormant vine.
“How so?” Ryoku asked.
Without answering, Luna turned over to Artemis. “Artemis, it’s risky, but… touch it.”
“No way!” Artemis retorted, obviously reluctant.
“Artemis!”
Artemis sighed at her tone of voice. “Okay….” With great reluctance and trepidation, Artemis padded over to the beaker and stood up on his hind legs in order to reach into the beaker. As soon as he started to reach for the vine, it suddenly jumped up and wrapped itself around Artemis’ paw. Everyone gasped as Artemis shook his paw to dislodge the vine before it could suck at his energy like a leech. As soon as Artemis shook the vine back into the glass beaker, the piece wiggled slightly, then stopped moving again.
“Do you understand?” Luna asked.
“Not a bit,” Usagi replied. Everyone present immediately sweatdropped.
“It steals energy?” Ami surmised.
“Exactly,” Luna confirmed.
“I’m surprised,” Makoto said as she glanced over to Usagi. “Usagi had such a dangerous thing on her head.” Usagi grimaced at the thought.
“There is something you should know about this thing,” Artemis told them seriously as he paused and gave each one of them a significant look. “Listen closely.”
“Just get on with it,” Minako told him.
“You don’t need to use dramatic pauses with us, Artemis,” Ryoku added.
“This is a twig from a Makaiju,” he told them.
“Makaiju?” the others repeated questioningly.
“Ah! Of course!” Usagi said suddenly as she knelt in front of the beaker to get a closer look. “What’s that?”
“It’s a kind of tree that steals energy,” Luna said patiently. Everyone began to look at each other, each one almost certain that the others were thinking the same thing that they were thinking. “We don’t know much about it,” Luna continued. “No one does.”
“What’s it doing at Natsumi’s house?” Rei said suddenly.
“Seijuro-san said he was doing plant research,” Usagi said as she stood back up. “Which means….”
“Which means?” the others prompted.
“They collect strange plants!”
“Your logic astounds me,” Ryoku said dryly.
“Really, Usagi,” Rei said, upset. “You have no brains.”
“We found a twig, so there must be a tree,” Luna pointed out.
“Ordinary people don’t collect such trees,” Minako added.
“So, we conclude that they are not ordinary people,” Usagi finished.
“Those two are suspicious,” Rei remarked.
“Didn’t they first show up the day after the meteor uproar?” Artemis mentioned.
“With everything else we have found out, that hardly seems to be a coincidence anymore,” Ryoku said seriously. “Put together the timing of their arrival and the twig of a Makaiju found at their home….”
“So, Seijuro and Natsumi are really Ail and Ann!” Makoto concluded.
“No way!” Usagi exclaimed in disbelief.
“It makes sense,” Ami agreed with a nod. “That seems to be the only explanation.”
Throughout the rest of the meeting, Usagi remained quiet as she thought about everything that the others had said. It made sense, yet… she still wasn’t sure.
She had to go see for herself.
After the meeting had ended, Usagi made her way back to Seijuro and Natsumi’s apartment complex.
“Usagi-chan, you shouldn’t do this alone,” Luna told her warningly.
“Luna, I don’t believe that Seijuro and Natsumi are Ail and Ann,” Usagi told her.
“Usagi-chan, I understand how you feel, but…,” Luna said patiently.
“I’ll go and find out for sure,” she told her firmly as she turned and started for the apartment.
“Alone?”
Usagi paused. “Well, maybe a bit later….”
Luna sighed. “You astonish me.”
“Hey, Meatball-head!” Mamoru called out as he walked up while waving at her with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.
“Mamoru-san!” Usagi called out happily as she turned toward him. “Where are you going?” she asked after noticing the flowers in his hand.
“There,” he said, pointing toward Seijuro and Natsumi’s apartment. “Because I heard Natsumi was at home sick.”
“You’re wrong,” she told him, upset. “She’s playing hooky! Hooky!” Suddenly, she began to cry. “But, why would you be going to visit Natsumi, Mamoru-san?”
“Because I got her to help with the Snow White play,” he replied. “It’s only natural, right?” With that, he turned and headed for the apartment.
“Wait!” she called out warningly. “There’s a Makaiju in there! It’ll steal your energy!”
“A Makaiju?” he said laughingly. “What’s that?”
“Hey!” she called out as she began to chase after him. “Stop!”
“Usagi-chan!” Luna called out as she began to chase after her.
“Visiting me?” Natsumi said in surprise as she looked down at the flowers in her hands, then back up at Mamoru, who was still standing out in the hallway. “But why?”
“Well, I was worried,” Mamoru told her casually. “I’m glad to see you seem well.”
Something warm is boiling up in my heart…, Natsumi thought as she began to blush. What is it?
“We’d better leave now,” Usagi said urgently as she tapped Mamoru on the shoulder.
“Oh, you’re back?” Natsumi said as she turned to Usagi. “Because you took so much trouble, won’t you come in?” Usagi merely looked at her in surprise.
“Oh, Usagi-san!” Seijuro said as soon as he spotted her from the kitchen. “Please have some tea. There’s also meat buns and cake.”
“All right!” Usagi said happily.
As Usagi and Mamoru came in and sat down on the couch in the living room, Seijuro brought out a tray with cups of tea. Usagi happily stuffed herself while Mamoru merely drank his tea.
I wonder if I can find a way to throw just Tsukino-san into the Makaiju’s room…, Natsumi wondered to herself as Seijuro sat down beside her.
“What a nice view,” Mamoru commented as he set down his cup and glanced out toward the balcony.
Natsumi grinned. Here was her opportunity. “It’s better if you go out on the veranda. Big Brother, show him.”
“Okay,” Seijuro agreed as he and Mamoru stood up and headed out to the balcony.
That’s better, she thought after they left, then turned to Usagi with a grin on her face.
“Tsukino-san, I’ll show you the next room,” she told Usagi, who had paused in her eating to look at her. “I cleaned it up properly so as to show it to you.”
What should I do? Usagi thought to herself. I want to look, but somehow it feels wrong.…
Natsumi paused as she leaned closer toward Usagi and started speaking in a conspiratorial voice. “To be honest, I’m sometimes worried about the scary thing in there.”
“Scary thing?” Usagi asked nervously.
“Yes, I don’t like going in there alone,” she continued as she stood up and pulled Usagi to her feet. “But, it’s okay. It’s sleeping at the moment.”
“Yeah…,” Usagi said, laughing nervously as they reached the door. “But, maybe I’ll look next time.”
“It’s all right now,” Natsumi said as she shoved her in the moment the door opened fully. “Yamandaka! Don’t let her escape!” she ordered as she closed the door behind her.
Immediately, the Cardian grabbed Usagi and quickly began draining her of her energy. Instantly, the Doom Tree began absorbing the energy the Cardian drained.
“Enough…,” a voice suddenly shouted, causing the Cardian to stare around the room for the disembodied voice. The Cardian found nothing, but continued to drain Usagi. “Enough…,” the voice shouted again. “Enough…. Enough….
“STOP IT!!!”
As if reacting to the force of the scream, the whole apartment began to tremble. The tree’s roots began growing at a tremendous rate, bursting through the floor and wrecking the room that housed it. Its branches started lashing out everywhere as the tree grew at an alarming speed.
“What’s this?” Seijuro said, wondering what all the shaking was about.
“What’s happening?” Mamoru exclaimed.
“What’s going on?” Natsumi exclaimed as she stared at the door she had pushed Usagi through. Suddenly, the Doom Tree’s roots burst through the door, knocking her to the floor. The walls holding back the Doom Tree shattered and the altered space that Ail and Ann had created to house the tree in such a small space expanded into normal dimensions, engulfing not only the entire apartment, but everything above it as well.
“Help!” Usagi called out as she was lifted into the air by one of the roots.
“Meatball-head!” Mamoru called out apprehensively as he saw Usagi.
“Usagi-san!” Seijuro called out worriedly as well. “Ann!” he called out as well, once he saw Natsumi being lifted into the air by another root. The Cardian was also captured by one of the Doom Tree’s roots, but it was promptly lifted up and slammed into the floor.
On the ground outside of the apartment complex, the others arrived in time to see the roots of the Doom Tree cover the entire building. Up on what was now the new roof of the apartment complex, a huge tree stood ominously in its own dark shadow, accentuated by the starless night sky.
“What’s this?” Rei exclaimed in shock.
“So… that is the Makaiju…,” Ryoku said, his voice and expression cold.
“Usagi-chan!” Ami said worriedly as she stared up at the tree above them.
“We can’t get in!” Luna exclaimed after noticing that the doors had roots growing over them.
“Then, we force our way in,” Ryoku told them fiercely.
Rei nodded her agreement. “Everybody, transform!”
“Right!” came the unanimous reply.
“Knight swords power!”
“Mars power….”
“Mercury power….”
“Venus power….”
“Jupiter power….”
“…make up!”
At once, all five Sailor Scouts transformed.
“Sailor Knight!”
“Sailor Mars!”
“Sailor Mercury!”
“Sailor Venus!”
“Sailor Jupiter!”
“Leave this to me!” Jupiter stated as she prepared her attack. “Supreme thunder!” She flung her attack at the roots covering the entrance to the apartment complex, but the attack didn’t even leave a mark on the huge roots. “Nothing?!?” she exclaimed in disbelief.
“My turn, then,” Knight said as he rushed toward the roots with both swords drawn. The blades struck the roots, but they refused to cut through. Undaunted, Knight continued his assault. Hacking, slashing, stabbing, slicing… nothing seemed to affect it. With a roar, he gave one last swing with both swords and with all his strength.
Still nothing.
The only sign that showed of Knight’s attack was several superficial cuts on the surface of one of the roots.
“I could… eventually… cut through…,” he began as he tried to catch his breath, “…but that… would take days. Time we don’t have.”
As if to drive home that fact, the sound of Usagi yelling in fright continued to pull at them.
“It’s no use…,” Jupiter said quietly as everyone stared up at the roof.
“We have to get through,” Knight growled in frustration through clenched teeth. “But, how?!?”
“We could use a miracle right about now…,” Venus said worriedly.
“Usagi…,” Mars murmured worriedly as the frightened yelling continued.
To Chapter 55: Secret of the Doom Tree