“Everyone, I’d like to introduce to you a new classmate,” the teacher said cheerfully. “This is Tsukino Usagi. Please welcome her to our school.”
Chibiusa stood at the entrance to the classroom while the teacher was making her introduction. It was her first day at this new elementary school and she hoped she’d make a good impression. Well, from seeing how the students were staring at her, maybe they were impressed.
“She’s so small!”
Or, maybe not.
“She’s a little rabbit, so we should call her ‘Chibiusa’!” the same boy teased.
“Stop it!” the girl sitting slightly behind and to the right of the rude boy exclaimed angrily. “Why do you always have to be so rude?”
“Chibiusa! Chibiusa!”
Chibiusa glared at the boy as he continued to mock her. She would’ve said something in reply, but the girl beat her to it.
“I thought I told you to stop!” She accentuated her point nicely with a loud thwack as she smacked him over the head with her rolled up workbook.
“Oww.… All right, already!”
Chibiusa merely watched them with some slight bewilderment. Well, at least the boy wasn’t teasing her anymore.
“Well… how about, ‘Chibiusa-chan’?” he asked more politely than before and even smiled, albeit a little sheepishly.
“Is that okay?” the girl asked, also grinning.
Chibiusa smiled back and nodded. This was going to be a great first day at school.
Artemis sighed in relief as he moved his paw away from the cold compress on Chibiusa’s head. “Her fever’s gone down.”
Beside him, Luna nodded, also in relief. “Looks like she’s having a nice dream,” she commented as she gazed down at the young girl lying asleep.
Chibiusa’s slumber came to an end just as Luna had finished speaking. She looked a little weary, but she did seem better than before.
“How are you feeling?” she asked.
“Okay, I think,” Chibiusa answered softly. She still seemed a little tired, though. Despite her weariness, she sat up anyway and removed the compress from her head before it could slide off. Her pink hair, which was normally tied up with a pair of odango – conical in shape, unlike Usagi’s spherical odango – cascaded freely down over her shoulders. “Do you think I can go to school tomorrow?”
Both cats grinned at the question. “Do you like school?” Luna asked.
“Yes,” Chibiusa agree. “Let’s see…. The girl who sits next to me in class is….”
The door suddenly opened slightly as Usagi came partly into the room. “So, how’re you feeling?”
“I’m okay now,” Chibiusa said as she and the cats turned toward the new visitor. “I’m full of energy!”
“I’m glad!” Usagi said as she came further into the room. “We all came to see how you were doing.”
“Hi!” Ami greeted as she came through the door and smiled at the young convalescent.
“Are you feeling better?” Rei asked as she stepped through after Ami and grinned.
Right after Rei stepped into view, both Makoto and Minako poked their heads into the room, grinning cheerfully at the pink-haired girl.
“Hey!” Makoto called out right along with Minako’s “Hi!”
The sound of a throat clearing very loudly was heard from outside. All of the girls exchanged confused looks for a second before realizing that they were now blocking the doorway. With identical sheepish grins on their faces, the girls all moved further into the room, allowing Ryoku to step inside as well. The mock-stern glare he gave the girls was enough to make Chibiusa giggle a little bit.
“I’m glad to see you looking healthy again, kiddo,” he said, dropping his glare and giving the young girl a friendly half-smile. “Oh, by the way, has anyone ever told you how cute you look with your hair down like that?” Chibiusa blushed slightly as the others glanced at him. He merely raised an eyebrow as he gave them his what-are-you-looking-at-me-for look, then gestured at Ami, or rather toward the box she was carrying.
“This is for you,” she said as she raised the box up to show Chibiusa.
Instantly, Chibiusa’s expression turned ecstatic as she sat up further in her bed. “Thank you!” she squealed in delight.
“By the way, Chibiusa, there’s a cute, little friend here to see you!” Usagi added as Ryoku stepped aside to admit a small brunette girl with her hair gathered up in a little bun on top of her head.
“Chibiusa-chan?” the girl called out uncertainly, perhaps wondering if she was still sick.
“Momo-chan!” Chibiusa exclaimed excitedly as flung her blanket off her. She leaped off the bed and ran toward her friend, barreling into the footrests the two cats were sitting on and knocking them – and the cats – across the floor in her haste. “Momo-chan! Momo-chan!”
“Chibiusa-chan!” Momo shouted as she hugged her friend. “Is your cold gone now?”
“I’m fine now!” she replied with a wide grin on her face.
“I’m so happy!
Usagi watched the two young girls and smiled softly as the two began to giggle with each other. A hand on her shoulder pulled her gaze away from the two girls to where Ryoku was silently gesturing with a nod of his head for her to follow him and the others to the far side of the room in order to give the two friends some time alone together for catching up. She nodded silently and followed the others as they all sat down at the table on the other side of the room and watched.
“It’s not the same at school without you, Chibiusa-chan,” Momo said as she drew up one of the knocked over footrests to the bed and sat on it as Chibiusa slipped back into bed again, drawing the blanket she had thrown aside a few moments before.
“Me, too, Momo-chan. I wanted to play with you, too.”
“We can play together at school as soon as you get better.”
“Yes, I’ll come to school tomorrow. I promise.”
“She looks so happy,” Rei observed with a quiet smile.
“Chibiusa-chan has a best friend,” Minako stated with a cheerful smile of her own.
“And someone her own age,” Ryoku added as he sipped his tea.
“She must’ve been lonely, coming from the future all by herself,” Makoto remarked thoughtfully.
Ami glanced past Ryoku, who was nodding slowly and silently in agreement, at Makoto and lowered her head as she put a finger to her chin in thought. “But, why is the enemy after Chibiusa-chan?”
Suddenly all eyes, human and cat, were turned toward Ami, with the exception of the two girls chatting away happily, and Ryoku, who was still sipping his tea. The girls gathered around the table, along with the two cats, all sighed as they slipped into quiet contemplation at Ami’s question.
“A good question,” Ryoku suddenly said with a small frown as he set down his cup. “But, somehow, I have the feeling that sometime soon, we will have our answer. I’m sure of it.”
Late in the evening, a black light slowly faded into being near the entrance to Juuban District Park. In the center of this sphere of dark blackness, a Dark Henge stood drawing upon the negative point it stood upon. A low rumbling split the silence as the ground began to erupt in front of the Dark Henge. The broken clumps of earth rose up to the height of a tall man, hardened until it seemed to be as stone, then changed into the form of a silver-haired man, wearing a white muscle shirt, pale blue tights and a pair of earrings similar to the ones Emerald wore, only black. His golden eyes flashed red as he flung his dark-skinned arms out to his sides, then thrust them forward, toward the Dark Henge, with a loud cry, imbuing the crystal with more dark power. As he did so, the Dark Henge responded by drawing out dark power from the negative point, causing the trees and bushes around the area all lost their green leaves and were left as bare skeletons.
However, as this was happening, a second Dark Henge was also drawing out dark power from the roof of the Juuban Elementary School. This one was starting to grow, just like its counterpart back at the park. An almost identical tall man was standing in front of this one, watching intently. This light-skinned man was dressed similar as well, but his shirt was dark blue and his tights, white.
“It seems to be going well, Kiral,” a voice said from behind.
Kiral turned his head slightly and glanced over his shoulder with a slight grin. “Emerald-sama.”
“And Akiral?” Emerald asked as she faded into view with her feathered fan spread open in front of her mouth.
“All is as planned.”
Emerald lowered her fan and smirked. “I see,” she said as she began to walk toward the Dark Henge, passing Kiral on her way. “It’s time to stop these roundabout plans. They just don’t suit my nature. That’s why they kept failing.” As she passed by Kiral, Akiral suddenly appeared next to him, their countenances and postures mirroring each other almost exactly.
“This strong Dark Henge will set things right, once and for all,” she continued as she walked past the enlarged statue and stopped near the edge of the roof while staring out at the city. “Kiral!”
The light-skinned man straightened. “Yes.”
“Akiral!”
The dark-skinned man straightened. “Yes.”
“I’ll leave those bratty girls in your hands.”
“Of course,” the two intoned as they bowed and disappeared.
This victory will be my gift to Prince Diamond-sama, she thought as she closed her eyes and imagined the pleased look on his face. With this, I will be able to say farewell to this primitive world!
She opened her eyes, flipped open her fan in front of her face, and laughed.
“I’m so late!”
While this was the normal morning battle cry for Usagi, Luna couldn’t help but feel worried since these words were coming from Chibiusa’s mouth. Not to mention that the young girl was four minutes late.
“Why didn’t you wake me up, Luna?” she asked as she ran as fast as her small legs could go.
Now that sounded familiar, as well. If it wasn’t for the fact that she wanted to go to school, she would’ve thought that she was running along with a shorter, younger, pink-haired version of Usagi.
“I tried to wake you up several times!” she retorted. “But you didn’t get up, did you?”
“Oh, I can’t stand this!” Chibiusa complained as she turned into the entrance to Juuban Elementary School with her Luna Sphere floating behind her, as always. She was just about to reach the doors when the sound of yelling caught her attention. A lot of yelling.
“What’s going on?” she wondered as she put off being late to go investigate the ruckus.
As soon as they passed the end of the building and looked out into the play area of the school, Chibiusa stared in confusion as Luna’s jaw dropped.
Fighting. And a lot of it. All of the kindergarten class was outside engaging in a free-for-all mêlée. Boys fighting boys. Girls fighting girls. Boys and girls fighting each other. The fighting was so huge and chaotic that clouds of dust were being kicked up all around.
“Everybody’s out playing,” Chibiusa said, puzzled. “But the first class should’ve started already….”
Luna was too concerned to sweatdrop or facefault. “They’re not playing. They’re fighting!”
Chibiusa turned toward Luna in disbelief. “Fighting?” She turned back, only to gasp as she recognized a familiar face in the fracas. “It’s Momo-chan!” she exclaimed as she spotted the girl cornered against the far wall by some boy. “Momo-chan!” She immediately ran to the girl’s aid.
“You little brat!” the boy growled as he thrust a threatening finger at her.
“Shut up!” Momo sneered. “You’re so annoying!” She lunged forward and kicked the boy in the head, knocking him to the ground.
Chibiusa stopped and stared wide-eyed at her friend in absolute amazement. “Momo-chan…. Incredible….”
Momo glared at Chibiusa as she was standing back up. “You wanna fight me, too?” she asked, her eyes flashing red.
“Momo-chan…,” she murmured, taken aback by the heat in her eyes.
“How dare you call me by my name as if I’m your friend!” Momo growled as she took an aggressive fighting stance. “I hate you!”
Chibiusa flinched at that. “What? What? What?!?” she exclaimed angrily just before Momo kicked out her legs from under her.
“You deserved that,” Momo said with a malicious smirk before she ran away, laughing mockingly at her.
Chibiusa sat up and stared after her. “Now, I’m mad!” she growled as she stood up and gave chase. “Wait! Wait!!!”
Luna stood back away from the insanity and watched Chibiusa chase after her friend with an apprehensive look on her face. “What is going on here?”
As if in answer to her question, a dark, ominous glow began to emanate from the roof of the school.
Luna jerked back in shock. “What was that?!?”
“The rays of dark power…,” Artemis murmured as he stared up in the same direction she was staring.
This time, Luna almost had a heart attack. “Artemis! When did you get here?!?”
Chibiusa had lost Momo through the halls of the school, but the sight that was now lying in front of her was enough to make her forget about her. Windows shattered. Desks overturned and a few even smashed. Papers torn and scattered to the winds. Random graffiti and even a few spiteful, hateful, and a couple of obscene words were scribbled all over the chalkboard. Overhead lights destroyed. In short, the whole classroom was trashed. And it was her classroom.
“This is horrible…,” she murmured, taking in the carnage. “Why…?”
A loud shout and a pole being thrust in front of her cut her reflections short. She quickly whirled around to find not only Momo, but the rest of her class, including the teacher, all facing her at once, each glaring at her as if they wanted nothing more than to beat her into unconsciousness… and maybe not even stop then. Her own personal lynch mob.
“Momo-chan…. And even the teacher…,” she murmured as she warily backed away from the mob.
Without a word, Momo swung the pole she had acquired and swung it at Chibiusa. She jumped out of the way as the pole struck the ground. And that was the cue for the rest of the mob to begin the chase.
And up on the roof, Kiral laughed softly to himself.
Chibiusa ducked into the first classroom she reached after ducking around the corner in the hallway, then shut the door behind her. She tried to calm her rapidly beating heart as the hunting mob of children surged past the door, crying out for her to stop. Once the last of them ran past the door, she sighed with relief into the silence.
That was when the skeleton propped up against the wall moved forward slightly.
“It’s us, Chibiusa-chan,” Luna said as she and Artemis padded into the startled girl’s view.
She sighed again as she let herself slide down to the floor against the door. “Don’t scare me like that. What’s going on?”
“It’s probably the….”
Artemis cut off just before the door opened and a fierce-looking Momo glared into the classroom. “Chibiusa! Where are you hiding?” Her angry gaze scanned the classroom, searching for the girl, but she was nowhere in sight. She snorted irritably as she closed the door and continued her search elsewhere.
“What’s happened to Momo-chan?” Chibiusa whispered worriedly as she crawled out from hiding underneath the large teacher’s desk.
“It’s probably Emerald’s doing again,” Artemis concluded.
“You’re probably right,” Luna agreed as she hopped up onto the table. “Artemis, tell Usagi-chan and the others right away.”
“Right,” he nodded and hurried on his way.
“Chibiusa-chan, let’s get out of here,” she said, turning to the young girl as soon as Artemis started to leave.
Chibiusa was silent for a moment. “I’m not leaving,” she told her without turning to look at her. Luna glanced at her in surprise, but she continued before she could say anything. “I can’t run away and leave Momo-chan like that!” She then turned to Luna and smiled faintly. “I’m really scared, but I’ll fight for her.”
“Chibiusa-chan…,” Luna said, smiling at the young girl with pride as she turned to watch the door. “Let’s stay here until Sailor Moon and the others arrive.”
“What?!?”
“Chibiusa-chan’s school?”
Artemis managed to find Usagi, Ami, Makoto and Ryoku all in the same place, so he had to start with them. Ami could contact the others.
“We have to go immediately!”
“We understand,” Ami acknowledged just as her wrist communicator went off.
“Something’s happening in Juuban Park!” Minako’s voice said urgently. “Come immediately!”
“What should we do?” Usagi asked worriedly. “Which one should we go to first?”
“We’ll go to the park, so you look after Chibiusa-chan, okay?” Ami told her. Usagi merely nodded.
“Wait,” Ryoku said with a small frown. “If the enemy has two spots under attack at one time, then we need to be especially careful. Rei-chan and Minako-chan should be heading for Juuban Park as we speak, right? Since you two are going there as well, I will go with Usagi-chan. All right?”
Everyone nodded, then thrust their transformation items skyward.
“Moon crystal power, make up!”
“Mercury star power, make up!”
“Jupiter star power, make up!”
“Knight star sword power!”
Venus glanced up from her communicator and grimaced at the huge Dark Henge in front of her. “How did it get so big without us knowing?”
“Their tactics are completely different,” Mars added.
“They’re trying to finish us off all at once,” Venus figured as she and Mars continued to stare at the giant crystal statue. Arcs of dark power crawled all over the statue, lighting it up like a streetlamp.
“Anyway, we’d better destroy this statue before things get any worse,” Mars said.
An arrogant laugh from behind caused the two Scouts to whirl around in surprise to see that Akiral had suddenly appeared behind them.
“It’s too big for you to handle,” he said smugly with his arms folded casually across his chest. “I don’t think you can destroy it now.”
A desk crashed through a second story window just as Sailor Moon arrived at the elementary school with Knight and Artemis. Broken glass tumbled down from above as the desk hit the ground with a loud crash.
However, the falling desk wasn’t what made Sailor Moon gasp and Knight scowl coldly.
“What is that?!?” Sailor Moon exclaimed as she stared up at the school’s roof.
“Is that a Dark Henge?” Knight breathed, his tone low with worry.
“No way!” Artemis said as he stared at the enormous crystal statue. Arcs of dark power covered this statue as well. “It wasn’t that big when I left!”
“How big was it when you left, Artemis?” Knight asked as he continued to stare at the Dark Henge.
“About half as big.”
“And how long ago was that?”
“About fifteen minutes ago.”
“Damn…. This is very bad….”
“Venus love-me chain!”
The chain of energy quickly lashed out at Akiral, but struck against a large slab of earth that he forced upward by punching the ground.
“Burning mandala!”
The rings of fire were enough to break through the earth wall, but Akiral had already leaped up in order to avoid the attack. He hovered in the air and prepared a counterattack.
“Shine aqua illusion!”
If he was any closer to the ground than he was, the attack would’ve hit him from behind. However, her had heard the attack coming with just barely enough time to avoid it. Idly, he wondered if the cold attack had even frosted the ends of his long hair, but he put the thought out of his mind quickly.
“Mercury!” Venus exclaimed in surprise as she glanced in the direction of the origin of the attack and found her standing there facing the Droid along with Jupiter.
“Jupiter!” Mars also exclaimed as she glanced in their direction as well. She was about to inquire to the absence of Sailor Moon and Knight, but Akiral’s laugh caused everyone to turn their attention back to the silver-haired Droid.
“So, more enemies gather…,” he said dismissively as he folded his arms again. “Then, we’ll have the final battle at Juuban Elementary School. I’ll send you all to hell, so look forward to it.” He laughed and disappeared.
“Juuban Elementary School?” Venus repeated quizzically.
Mars frowned worriedly. “Chibiusa-chan’s school!”
Knight glanced cautiously around the corner, then signaled to Sailor Moon and Artemis as soon as he saw that the hallway was clear, then let the white cat lead the way. Glass shards seemed to line a small part of the hallway floor next to the windows, so he avoided them. There may be no one here, but there was no knowing if someone was hiding and listening for someone’s approach. This place had the feeling of an ambush lying in wait.
A soft crunching noise from behind caused him to whirl around sharply. Sailor Moon almost jumped backward in surprise, letting out a small squeak in the process as Knight just shook his head and sighed in vexation. As soon as she noticed the shards she had stepped on and crunched beneath her boot, she quickly hopped to the side, well away from the trail of broken glass, and quietly laughed as she put a hand to the back of her head in chagrin. It took a great deal of his patience to keep from banging his head against the nearest wall.
Without a word, they continued down the hallway until Artemis led them to the classroom he left Luna and Chibiusa in. “Chibiusa?” Sailor Moon called out tentatively as she and Knight glanced around the classroom. “Are you here, Chibiusa?”
“Kiddo?” Knight called out as he slid open the door and walked in with Sailor Moon and Artemis.
“Nobody’s here,” she observed as she closed the door behind her.
“That’s strange,” Artemis murmured.
“Are you sure this is the classroom, Artemis?” Knight asked.
“I’m sure.”
“It’s me, Chibiusa,” she called out as she glanced around the room. “Sailor Moon.”
“Kiddo? I’m here, too,” Knight added.
The skeleton standing over to their right raised its head. “Sailor Moon? Sailor Knight?”
Sailor Moon’s eyes widened in fear. The skeleton… moved?!? She glanced at Knight and wondered why he seemed so calm. How could he be so calm? The skeleton moved!!!
The skeleton began to charge at them. “Sailor Knight! Sailor Moon!!!” it wailed as it lunged between them and threw its arms around both their necks. She began to scream in terror, only to cut off as she heard Knight making soothing sounds to the skeleton. She was about to ask if he had completely lost his mind when she felt something clinging desperately to her right leg. Or rather, someone.
“Chibiusa,” Sailor Moon said as she glanced down at the young girl clinging to both her right leg and Knight’s left leg at the same time. Chibiusa had buried her face into her leg and was crying while Knight was gently patting her on her shoulder as he made soothing sounds in order to calm her down. The poor girl must’ve been frightened out of her mind! Well, she was here now.
The sound of something crumbling accompanied by a trickle of dust falling on top of Chibiusa’s head caught both Scouts’ attention. They both looked up to see Kiral standing before them with his hand raised up and fingers hooked into a claw, which was currently pointed at Sailor Moon’s head.
“I think… now would be a good time to leave,” Knight said slowly as he started to back away, but stopped as he realized that Chibiusa was still clinging to his leg.
“Uh-oh….”
Sailor Moon ducked as Kiral thrust his arm forward, cutting through the air and missing her head by centimeters. Knight wasted no time in grabbing both her hand and Chibiusa’s hand and dragging them both behind him as he rushed out of the classroom with the two cats following close behind.
Kiral passed through the wall and smirked after the fleeing Sailor Scouts. “You’ve arrived, Sailor Moon.”
Sailor Moon tried to run on her own, but only succeeded in tripping up both Knight and herself, sending them both crashing into the ground, but with Knight landing face-first and Chibiusa landing on top of him.
“Of course, I’m here!” she snapped as she sat up and glared at Kiral. Chibiusa slid off Knight as he pushed himself up off the floor. “Look at what you’ve done to the school! Do you think you can get away with this?” Knight glanced flatly at her, wondering why she was bothering to make her speech while sitting on the floor, but she went on anyway. “On behalf of the Moon….”
“If you have time to spout nonsense, maybe you should be praying instead,” Kiral suggested.
“I agree with the nonsense part…,” Knight began, but cut off when Sailor Moon glared at him. However, her glare faded as Akiral appeared beside Kiral.
Sailor Moon and Knight exchanged worried glances before turning to gaze at their twin foes. Chibiusa just clung to Sailor Moon, frightened even more than before.
“Two of you?” Sailor Moon said weakly.
“From bad to worse…,” Knight muttered, grimacing.
“Die!” both twins shouted as the attack commenced. Akiral swiped at Sailor Moon, who dived out of the way while dragging Chibiusa along with her, while Kiral slashed at Knight, who also rolled out of the way.
“You can’t get away!” Kiral shouted as he leaped over the Scouts and landed on behind them. Now the twin Droids stood at either end of the hallway, cutting off their escape.
“Damn…,” Knight growled as he stood protectively over Sailor Moon and Chibiusa while trying to watch both Droids at the same time. Sailor Moon was kneeling while holding onto Chibiusa, her eyes full of worry.
Chibiusa glanced back at Akiral and was taken aback when she spotted her friend standing beside him, now carrying a push broom in her hands as if it was a staff. “Momo-chan!” she called out, slightly pulling away from Sailor Moon. “Momo-chan! Momo-chan!”
“It’s no use,” Luna told her as she stood in front of her.
“She’s being controlled by the dark power,” Artemis added. “It’s useless to say anything to her now.”
Chibiusa’s face fell as she glanced back up at Momo. It couldn’t be hopeless, could it? She turned toward the other Droid standing behind her and scowled.
“How could you!” she shouted angrily. “How could you do this to Momo-chan!” She pulled away from Sailor Moon and started to charge at Kiral. Sailor Moon tried to catch her arm, but missed.
“Kiddo!” Knight shouted, calling her back, but she refused to listen as Kiral pulled his arm back in preparation for an attack.
“Shabon spray!” Mercury shouted, causing a thick mist to fill the hallway.
“We’re here, as you wished,” Jupiter said as she and the other Sailor Scouts lined up behind Kiral.
“We won’t let you do whatever you please,” Mercury added.
Kiral snorted derisively. “Then, stop us if you can.” He lifted his right hand over his chest, where a black light pulsed, then he vanished.
“He’s gone!” Mars exclaimed.
“Did he run away?” Jupiter wondered as the others rushed to the aid of Sailor Moon, Knight and Chibiusa.
“Everyone!” Sailor Moon shouted in relief.
“You came just in time,” Knight added, nodding in relief.
“Sailor Moon, Sailor Knight, are you both all right?” Mercury asked.
As one, all of the Sailor Scouts turned to glare at Akiral, who had remained behind. “Now that your partner has fled…,” Mars began.
“…prepare yourself!” Mercury finished.
Akiral just laughed. “Stupid little girls,” he scoffed as Momo suddenly rushed forward, her broom raised, ready to strike.
“Momo-chan! Stop!” Chibiusa cried as she ran toward her friend, but was pulled back by Mars.
“Watch out!” she warned as she dragged Chibiusa back toward the other Scouts. Momo tried to swing the handle of the broom at Chibiusa, but Knight blocked it with the flat side of his Star Sword.
Momo stepped back as she expertly twirled the broom in her hands as if it was a staff. Knight gave Chibiusa a reassuring glance to tell her that he wouldn’t harm her, then stepped forward with his sword held ready. She thrust the handle of the broom repeatedly at him, but each time, he knocked away the broom with the flat side of his sword. She kept pushing, but he held to his defensive stance.
As Momo continued to press Knight, Jupiter saw that Akiral was preparing to attack him. “Watch out!” she warned as she ran forward to intercept the attack… which was exactly what Kiral was waiting for.
“Take that!” he shouted as he fired a blast of black energy at her, which struck her hard.
“Jupiter!” the others shouted in concern.
As she was recovering from the blast, Akiral thrust an arm forward and launched his own attack while Kiral’s attack shifted into something similar. A large four-sided box of dark power quickly formed around the entire group, including Momo, who was still dueling with Sailor Knight. Once the box was complete, the interior lit up with hundreds of arcs of dark power which mercilessly struck anyone caught inside. All six Sailor Scouts, Chibiusa, and even Momo screamed in pain as the dark power lashed at them.
Chibiusa opened one eye, clenched in pain, and saw her friend suffering as she was. “Momo-chan!” she screamed, pulling away from Mars, who was trying to shield her from most of the arcs of dark power with her own body, and ran toward her friend.
Despite the fact that she had been trying to beat him with her broom, Knight was trying to shield Momo with his body just like Mars had been trying to shield her with hers. Chibiusa ran up to them and hugged her friend, helping Knight to protect her friend as well. Moments after she had embraced her friend, a blinding light burst forth from her forehead, banishing the dark power barrier. Sailor Knight stared up at the ceiling to keep from being blinded by the light she was giving off.
Both Droid twins stared. “This energy…,” Kiral murmured.
“The Rabbit!” Akiral exclaimed.
“Chibiusa!” Sailor Moon shouted apprehensively.
As the light faded, Chibiusa sagged forward while Knight recovered enough to hold both girls up. His eyes caught the light shining on her forehead, but failed to make out the shape it made before it disappeared completely.
“Momo-chan?” she called out wearily to her friend as she tried to straighten up in order to see her friend’s face. Knight helped her straighten up, but kept a hand near her back, should she need it.
Momo’s eyes fluttered for a moment before opening up. “Chibiusa-chan…,” she said faintly as she looked up at her.
Chibiusa smiled. She seemed to be normal again. “Momo-chan…,” she said in relief as she let her friend slowly sink down to the floor in order to rest.
“What happened?” Momo asked as she sat up and took in the ruins of their school.
“Die, Rabbit!” Akiral shouted as he fired a blast at Chibiusa.
“Chibiusa-chan!” she exclaimed as she pushed her out of the way and jumped in front of the attack before any of the others could react. She screamed in pain as the attack struck hard.
Chibiusa stared as she watched her friend fall to the floor, knocked unconscious by the attack. Momo had pushed her out of the way to protect her. It was just like before….
The attack was unexpected. She had been with her mother when it happened. A huge blast of dark power had descended upon the palace from nowhere. Her mother instantly flung herself in front of her to protect her and took the brunt of the attack, even though the force of the attack still knocked her off her feet. She looked up to see what happened to her mother. She looked like she was in pain.
To protect her, she let herself get hurt.…
The memory came back easily now. Ever since that one battle between the Ayakashi sisters and Rubeus, memories that had been locked away in the back of her mind by fear had slowly come back to her. That last memory was one of such. But now….
Momo-chan.…
Mama.…
“No!!!”
The entire school lit up as the same energy Chibiusa had emitted before, surged forth as if driven by the force of her scream. Both Scouts and Droids had to throw up their arms in front of their faces in order to protect themselves from the force of the power pouring out of her.
The light from her forehead engulfed everything. Her hair and clothing fluttered as if caught in a breeze as she glared at the two Droids, her expression pure fury.
“How could you!” she raged. “To Momo-chan…. To my Mama!” The power surged forth even harder than before, engulfing the two Droids and blasting them clear out of the school building.
In the future, the Black Crystal suddenly began to glow with a golden light. This caught the attention of both Prince Diamond and Wiseman. Immediately, Wiseman started looking into the source of the light.
“What power!” Kiral exclaimed as he stared back at the school from the outside. The entire building and even the sky surrounding the area were lit with the golden light pouring out from Chibiusa. The Sailor Scouts all stared at her in complete disbelief. How could this much power come from such a small girl?
“Kiddo?” Knight murmured in a mix of confusion and concern.
As the light and the power slowly began to fade away, Chibiusa’s hair – which had come undone from her second burst of power – slowly fell down around her shoulders again as she began to sink to the floor, but not before Knight caught her.
“Chibiusa!” each of the other Scouts exclaimed as Knight worriedly held her.
“To think that Chibiusa-chan had all that power in her…,” Mercury said as she watched her with deep concern.
“Momo-chan…,” Chibiusa murmured as she stirred in Knight’s arms. “Momo-chan….” Knight carefully shifted his hold on her to allow her to reach out to her friend.
As Sailor Moon watched her, her face suddenly grew hard. No one was going to get away with doing this to Chibiusa.
No one.
“Mercury, Venus, Knight, you three take care of Chibiusa,” Sailor Moon told them as she stood up.
“I can look after her myself,” Knight said as he looked up at Sailor Moon. “You’ll need more power than usual to beat two enemies at once and I’m the weakest when it comes to power.”
Sailor Moon looked at him for a moment before nodding. “There is no way I’m forgiving those two!” she exclaimed fiercely.
Knight nodded as if expecting it. “Then, give them one for me. Each.”
Prince Diamond and Wiseman stared at the Black Crystal for a while after the glow faded from the crystal.
“The Rabbit’s unknown power has been awakened,” Wiseman stated suddenly.
“Unknown power?” Prince Diamond repeated questioningly without taking his gaze from the Black Crystal.
“The Rabbit’s power would be very valuable to us,” Wiseman said as he turned toward Prince Diamond. “It would be a waste to destroy her and that power.”
“What are you planning?” he asked.
From within the shadows, Saffire watched and frowned suspiciously.
“Where are you hiding?” Sailor Moon demanded as she and the other Scouts ran out from the school. “Come out and fight!”
As if on cue, the two Droids surfaced from underneath the concrete and leaped at them. “Die!” they shouted as they both lunged at them at the same time. However, their attack was cut short as a rose cut through the air in front of them and embedded itself into the concrete at an angle.
“Turning a place of study into a battlefield is an unforgivable crime,” Tuxedo Kamen declared from the top of a jungle gym.
“Tuxedo Kamen-sama!” Sailor Moon exclaimed eagerly.
“So, Sailor Moon, teach them the meaning of justice,” he declared.
“Yes!” Sailor Moon shouted as she brought out her Moon Scepter. The twin Droids immediately saw this as their cue to escape, but Jupiter intended to see that they stayed.
“Sparkling wide pressure!” she exclaimed as she slammed her attack into the ground that they were trying to escape into. The ball lightning burrowed through the ground until it struck the twin Droids, stunning them and preventing them from sinking further into the ground.
“Moon princess halation!” she shouted as she waved the scepter in front of her, firing a blast of white energy at the twin Droids. The attack stuck them shattering their skin to pieces, leaving only their figures in crystal, which disintegrated into two piles of powder. The jewels with the upside-down black crescent moon turned from pale blue into a dull lifeless gray as the two necklaces clattered to the ground. The two Dark Henges at Juuban Park and the roof of Juuban Elementary School shattered at the same time, sending the dark power they had collected back to where it had come from.
“We did it!” Sailor Moon cheered.
Emerald suddenly appeared before them, indignant fury palpable in her visage. “Damn you impudent little girls…!” she snarled as she clenched her fan tightly in barely controlled rage. “I’ll destroy you myself if I must! Prepare yourself!” she screamed as she snapped her fan in two. Twin spheres of dark power formed in her hands as she drew back, ready to attack.
Wait, Emerald.
“Prince Diamond-sama, why did you stop me?” Emerald asked, confused as she instantly halted her attack.
The plan has changed. Come back, Emerald.
“But, I….”
That is an order!
Emerald bowed her head in compliance, even though Prince Diamond couldn’t see it. As her hard glare turned toward the Sailor Scouts, they all took up fighting stances, ready for any attack.
“Don’t think you’ve won yet!” she warned. “When we get serious, this will be nothing in comparison.” With her usual loud laughter, she disappeared.
Sailor Moon glared at the empty space where Emerald had been for a long time before going back to see how Chibiusa was doing.
As Chibiusa sat beside her friend’s hospital bed, the others stood back and watched. It seemed strange and sort of ironic; just yesterday, the roles had been reversed with Momo being the visitor and Chibiusa being the visited. Momo had a bandage on her forehead, but that was the only sign of injury she had.
“Does it hurt?” she asked.
“No, I’m okay,” Momo replied. “How funny; we’re in the opposite situation from yesterday.” She laughed at that.
Chibiusa couldn’t help but quietly laugh as well. It was almost exactly what she had been thinking herself. Friends sometimes think alike, she supposed.
After visiting Momo, she had gone up to the roof to think. Everyone was up there with her, concerned for her and offering support. Luna, Artemis, Minako, Makoto, Rei, Ami, Ryoku, Mamoru, Usagi…. They were always ready and willing to help her.
Perhaps they could….
“I’m going to the future,” she finally announced. “I’m going to save my Mama.”
Usagi’s eyebrows raised in surprise. “How?”
Chibiusa reached underneath her shirt and pulled out the key that she always wore around her neck. “I’m going to use this key to the Time Gate,” she told them as she stared down at the key in her hand. “I’ve failed before, but I think it will work this time.”
She turned around with a pleading look in her eyes. “Please, everyone, come with me!” she entreated. “Mama…. Save my Mama….” She turned back around and silently stared down at the floor.
“A key to the Time Gate…,” Usagi murmured quietly.
Mamoru slowly walked over to Chibiusa and put a hand on her shoulder as he knelt down behind her. “Let’s go, together,” he said as she looked at him from over her shoulder. Her gaze slid from him to the others, who all shared the same determined look.
“We’ll all go,” Makoto added, her arms folded. Beside her, Ryoku nodded his agreement silently.
“We have to go,” Rei added.
“I’ll go, too!” Minako added with a cheery grin.
“That’s right,” Ami added as well. “We won’t know what the enemy is after if we don’t go to the future.”
“Besides, it’s time we stopped waiting for them to attack,” Ryoku added. “If we don’t stop them in the future, then they’ll never be truly defeated.”
“Think about this,” Luna interjected. “You shouldn’t decide so quickly.”
“It’ll be very dangerous,” Artemis added.
“Everyone’s made their decision,” Usagi stated. “It’s for Chibiusa.” She winked at the young girl as she gave her a quick thumbs-up.
“Everyone…,” Chibiusa said gratefully as she glanced back at them.
It was my fault Mama was…, she thought as she stared up at the slowly setting sun. No. She wouldn’t dwell on that. It was now time for her to fix things. With her friends’ help, everything would be all right again.
Mama… we’ll save you. I promise!
To Chapter 81: Journey to the Future