Jeff-Note: Sailor Moon and all related characters are the property of Takeuchi Naoko, Toei Animation, and DIC.
Sailor Moon: Quest for Marius
By D. Pung
Part 12: New Moon Rising
PG-13
She strolled down the dark, damp cavern hallway with a sneer on her pretty face. Her hair was blonde, cut stylishly short. She had a nice figure, clearly visible in the dark gray uniform, with knee-high black boots. But the biggest reason the youma scattered out of her way was the look of pure malice and hatred in her blue eyes. She marched with a purpose, with a sinister swagger. She was on her way to see Queen Marius, and perhaps that also served to clear a path for her. That and her tendency to blast anyone who got in her way....
Marius gazed thoughtfully in her ball. She rotated it slowly in its stand, remembering. The past ten years had not been without a few victories over the hated Scouts. The major setbacks had resulted in whole square miles of devastation. She grinned fiercely. A lot of energy had been gathered, and quite an army now waited for the conquest of the Scouts' world. That and a few other side projects....
Perhaps the crowning moment had been her defeat of Sailor Moon. She had waited three years, until a weak moment, and struck. It was one of the highlights of a lengthy conflict that would soon be at end. She had been long in training a worthy general for the command of her armies, investing a lot of time and power into her.
A purplish-black explosion caught her vision, at the entrance to her throne room. A youma was blasted back into a wall and disintegrated, and she walked in, a fierce grin on her face.
She strode arrogantly up to the throne, where she suddenly adopted a respectful demeanor, kneeling before her, head bowed. Marius grinned.
"Ah, rarin' to go, are we?" smiled Marius.
"Indeed, my Queen," she said in a silky, dark tone. It promised bad things, and Marius shivered in delight.
"Very well. Your mission is to infiltrate and befriend the Sailor Scouts," Marius began, her ball lighting with the images of the Scouts. "You will use the name Rhonda Thompson, acting as an American abroad, as you have been training for. I've provided you with the necessary information and powers to carve a niche for yourself to look legitimate. When the time comes, we will turn the tables on the Scouts, and you will have the glory of killing them all."
"What of Sailor Mars?" asked her protégé.
"Your innate talents will prevent her from discovering you," smiled Marius, pointed teeth showing at the irony.
"I am honored, my Queen," she smiled back. It was particularly evil.
"Go, and make me proud," ordered Marius.
"Of course, my Queen," grinned 'Rhonda'. She stood, executed a sharp spin on her stiletto heels, and promptly disappeared in a dark flash of energy.
"And soon," smirked Marius, "my revenge will be complete."
The chamber suddenly was filled with evil laughter....
* * * *
Raye gazed tiredly out of the window, holding the drapes aside with one hand. Things were bleak. Just over the hill from where she stood was one of the desolated areas. They couldn't be restored except by one person. If she ever returns, Raye thought dismally. She turned back around. The smell of Lita's cooking wafted to her nostrils and she mentally kicked herself for her pessimism. She could hear the cheerful laugh of their friend, Rhonda, a legal historian. Still, for some reason Raye always kept her guard up around Rhonda. There was simply something about her.
The Scouts had first met Rhonda several months before, when Amy had called a prestigious law firm about some information for one of the receptionists downstairs. Her infectious smile and ready laugh immediately cheered the Scouts, and they quickly grew close. Only Raye didn't trust her completely. Raye banished such thoughts from her mind as she turned from the window, surveying her intricately decorated quarters, reflecting her priestess origins. She had left the preparations for a little peace and quite, and to think about their new enemy, besides Marius, of course. A new general had made life quite difficult for them as of late. They had only caught shadowy glimpses of her, and as of yet had no concrete information... always a worry. It had been decided to forget about things for the time being and simply enjoy a night of fun. She moved towards the door, gazing one last time over her shoulder out of the window, on the eighth floor of Sailor Scout Plaza. She exited, securing the door behind her, and moving to the ornate staircase that led to the common areas. Raye generally avoided the elevators unless she was in a hurry.
"Finally clear your head?" asked Mina with a smile as Raye rejoined the group.
"Yeah," nodded Raye. "Not that it really helped."
"Aw, cheer up, Raye!" laughed Rhonda. "You guys are too awesome for such a drab mood! Let's see that winning smile!"
Raye couldn't help but to grin at that. Just then, the door to the kitchen opened, with Lita carrying a heaping platter to the table. The Scouts set down to serious business, namely, eating. There was just one sad note.
An extra plate, at the head of the table. Gleaming, empty, as usual.
* * * *
Amara sighed, gazing at the busy crowds moving through the mall, two days later. She was waiting for Michelle and Hotaru, who were in one of the nearby stores. She was still amused by the attention she and the others got. Despite the difficulties of the past ten years, their popularity worldwide was rising. A little girl came up to her.
"Sailor Uranus?" she asked tentatively. She held a picture of her.
Amara smiled. "Yes, little one?"
"Can I have your autograph?" the girl asked.
Amara grinned, and held open her hand. She willed a black marker to appear from her pocketspace, causing the little girl's eyes to open wider, if that was possible. All of the Scouts had learned to carry a marker on them in their pocketspaces. She took the picture and signed it with a flourish, the handed it back to the grateful little girl. She half expected to be swarmed, but she wasn't Sailor Venus, thankfully. That, and Michelle and Hotaru approached, done with their shopping. They exited the mall, into the broad parking lot, where they ran into a crowd being restrained by Security.
"Oh, geez," murmured Amara. Michelle grinned, finding the humor in the situation. Hotaru just shook her head, trying to keep a straight face and mostly failing. All three produced markers and moved towards the crowd. Soon, all three were fully engaged signing autographs.
Suddenly, the ground shook, and the rumbling echoes of an explosion reached their ears. All around them, people stopped, glanced at the dark black cloud even now drifting skyward, and spun their gazes around to rest on the three women. They blinked as just then, their communicators beeped.
"Amara here, go ahead."
"Michelle here."
"Hotaru here."
"Scouts, this is Dispatch. We have a negative energy event at the location of the old Cherry Hill Temple. Possible invasion by the Negaverse. All other Scouts enroute," came the slightly rushed voice of Luna, running dispatch on this day.
"So are we," said Amara. She sighed. "So are we. Out."
"Let's do it!" said Hotaru.
Three hands raised simultaneously towards the sky.
* * * *
The Scouts arrived, with Rhonda discretely trailing. The cautiously moved up the steps, with Mars getting increasingly angry. As they cleared the top step, they could plainly see the temple was no more.
"Dammit!" screamed Mars as Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn arrived. The team surveyed what used to be their home away from home with varying degrees of sadness. Mars dropped to her knees.
"Damn," she said, fists clenched. "Marius will pay for this!"
"Oh no," breathed Venus, drawing their attention as she pointed upwards. The Scouts were used to the helicopters that were even now flying overhead, filming. What they weren't used to was the pitch-black clouds gathering in the sky. They returned their focus to the task at hand, searching for the source of the darkness. It was then they realized they were not alone.
As a matter of fact, they were surrounded. Marius stepped out of the smoke, behind a line of her youmas. It was then they saw Rhonda right next to her.
"Rhonda!" shouted Jupiter. "Let her go, Marius!"
"She's an innocent bystander!" snapped Uranus. "Leave her out of this!"
"Oh really?" asked Marius, an evil smile plastered on her face.
"Bitch! We'll rip your heart out!" snapped a very pissed Mars.
"Tell you what," said Marius. "I'll let her pick. Rhonda?"
"Hmph," snorted Rhonda, an evil grin spreading on her face. "Can I share something with you, my friends?"
The Scouts blinked collectively as Rhonda was briefly surrounded by dark energy, replacing her clothes with a Negaverse uniform.
"I am General Rhodite, of the Negaforce! And today, Sailor Scouts," she paused, grinning as her eyes began to glow, and the youma moved forward. "Today, you shall die!"
The youma charged. The Scouts hesitated for the briefest of moments, despair clutching them.
"Damn," murmured Jupiter. She shook it off. The rod on her tiara rose as rage overtook her. "Fine! If that's how it's going to happen, that's fine! Time to die, punks! JUPITER CHAIN LIGHTNING BURST!"
Lightning charged down from the sky, dancing about her raised tiara and body, before launching straight into the mass of charging youma, electrocuting and destroying a dozen of them. The first shot broke the moment. The Scouts shared a collective glance, then leapt into combat mode.
"MARS SEARING INFERNO!"
As Mars' thumbs touched, the nimbus of flame that surrounded her spiraled between her hands and burst forth in an immense horizontal column of fire. She swept it, incinerating a vast arc of youmas.
"VENUS SHINING LOVE FORCE!"
Venus hugged herself, arms glowing, and suddenly threw her arms outward, unleashing a virtual wall of love energy. It smashed through the oncoming lines, obliterating a large amount of the enemies.
Mercury blinked as she scanned. "Guys! There's a portal, freshly created, behind Marius! I'm not sure we can collapse it! And there's more! We're facing THOUSANDS of youmas! All around us!"
"Then it looks like we'd better crush as many as we can before they get close!" shouted Uranus, brandishing her sword. She made a downward swipe as she shouted. "URANUS GALACTIC COLLISION!"
Suddenly, a blazing shape blasted out of the dark clouds, whizzing past a helicopter, highlighting the bottom of the clouds as it plummeted towards the battlefield. The impact decimated dozens of youmas.
Mercury turned as a group rushed right at her. She held her arms perpendicular to the ground, with ice energy flowing from her fingertips. She swung her arms forward. "MERCURY FREEZING WAVE SMASH!"
The expanding circular field of ice energy instantly shattered the oncoming enemies into piles of ice cubes.
The Scouts had now arrayed themselves in a circle, backs to each other, blasting the incoming. Neptune brandished her mirror.
"NEPTUNE STUNNING TSUNAMI!"
The image appeared in the mirror, an image of a wall of water threatening a small coastal village. As the water crashed down in the mirror, it burst forth and smashed into the enemies, drowning and pulverizing a vast quantity.
The twins were by each other, as usual. Over the years, Tuxedo Mask and they had developed an interesting combination. The twins had learned to link powers without physical contact. Even now, Earth-Love stood behind her twin, index fingers placed on either side of the gem on her tiara, which was glowing brightly. Her twin was busily attacking several enemies at once.
"EARTH ANGER PETRIFY!"
As the enemies became stoned, Mask hurled his roses to deadly effect, shattering the statues in twos and threes. It was, outsiders agreed, a very lethal combination.
"PLUTO FINAL SAY!"
The winds of time and eternity whistled around Pluto and the Garnet Orb, gathering strength before coalescing into a bright ball of power. Pluto raised her staff above her head, nine energy balls rotating around it. She dropped the end of her staff so it was pointing at the enemy, and unleashed the balls, each of which struck a separate target and destroyed it.
Saturn lowered the Silence Glaive, rippling with death energy, which crackled into ghost shapes of the tip of her glaive, rotating rapidly around it. She closed her eyes briefly, before opening them and shouting.
"SATURN SILENCE RUSH!"
The attack looked for all the world like an attack helicopter firing off rockets, as each shape fired in rapid succession, leaving a dark trail of energy. She steered them each into a youma, disintegrating them. She looked up. No Scout had been touched as of yet, but the beasts were reforming. Their "friend" looked pissed.
"What now?" asked Venus, defacto leader of the team.
* * * *
"And we go now to our very own Mari, orbiting the battlefield in our chopper, which, moments ago, caught a very close view of Sailor Uranus' meteoric attack.
Mari?"
"Thanks, Juni," the female reporter answered, gazing out of the windows in rapt fascination. "The Sailor Scouts are busy fending off this latest incursion by the Negaverse, which looks like the largest yet. We have just learned the name of the mystery General which has garnered such public hatred over the past few months. Apparently, she goes by General Rhodite, and has tricked and betrayed the Scouts. We're zooming in now to get a better view."
The image on the screen closed in on the enemy general, showing her with her arm outstretched, a look of concentration on her face. Artemis blinked, and shook his head, drawing Luna's attention. The two cats were in the high-tech control center of Sailor Scout Plaza, which resembled something from NASA. It was bustling with men and women. Most of the screens were various news channels, while some were the display screens of satellites, and the newly established Scout Detection Network (SDN), which spanned the globe. This network had been established after a few Negaverse attacks in America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. While most of the enemy activity was still focused in Japan (Mercury had theorized a thin Ethereal planar boundary), the Negaverse had been trying to throw the Scouts for a loop as of late.
That's not to say all of this ran through Artemis' head, but he gazed very carefully at the screen. Finally Luna spoke up.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Just something familiar about this scene," he said. His head angled thoughtfully. "I can't place it, but I'm getting a sense of deja vu."
This, in turn, caused Luna to slowly study the screen.
"Hmmm...."
* * * *
"So, you wanna play rough?" Rhodite demanded. "Fine!" Her hand crackled, and black electricity surged through the ranks of her army. Marius was now lounging nearby, cackling in enjoyment. The empowered army of monsters leapt forward.
"Oh, shit!" said Jupiter. "JUPITER CHAIN LIGHTNING BURST!"
Even the powerful lightning blasting through their ranks barely slowed the oncoming mass.
"All at once!" called Venus. When the enemy had reformed, they had redeployed along one axis of attack, allowing the Scouts to concentrate their fire. "Rapid Fire!"
"You got it, girlfriend!" shouted Mars. "MARS SEARING INFERNO!"
"MERCURY FREEZING WAVE SMASH!"
"VENUS SHINING LOVE FORCE!"
"EARTH ANGER PETRIFY!"
"SATURN SILENCE RUSH!"
"URANUS GALACTIC COLLISION!"
"NEPTUNE STUNNING TSUNAMI!"
"PLUTO FINAL SAY!"
The multitude of powerful attacks ripped into the ranks of the Negaarmy, accompanied by a swarm of roses. It smashed the ranks, but not nearly enough, as the creatures closed to melee range. Then, Rhodite closed her fist. As the first enemies were clubbed by the Scouts, black electricity raged through the ranks, discharging into them. She let out a battle cry, to be answered by the boos of the crowd that was watching at a safe distance. Rhodite grinned evilly as the Scouts struggled to their feet, fighting back against the onslaught. Several were already gushing blood from the raking claws of the youmas. She watched in delight as two grabbed Jupiter. Lightning crackled out of the sky, and Jupiter unleashed her powers at point-blank range. Fortunately, over the years, she had learned tighter control of her powers, and didn't harm herself too badly--and the lightning she summoned spasmed through both Jupiter and the tentacles that held her, electrocuting both thoroughly.
"Sailor Jupiter!" she screamed, restrained by Mars and Venus. Even as the creature gave off a final scream and turned into a pile of ash, Jupiter's badly burnt body dropped to the ice- -What the hell? though Rhodite, wondering where that had come from. She shrugged it off and returned her attention to the battle. She mentally commanded the youmas to weaken the Scouts further with claw swipes and blood loss. It seemed far more effective.
The Scouts were getting torn up. Even as Earth-Love attempted to keep them healed and fresh, it had long ago been determined that her powers, except for her Purify, only healed minor injuries, although they did keep the team optimistic and determined to fight. She was also having to defend herself, and there was just too many of them!
Mercury screamed as she was raked thrice, in close succession. The nearest beast grabbed her, and she realized one arm was broken. She needed more force to free herself. As it picked her up, Rhodite practically cheered. Goodbye, Sailor Mercury, she thought, a fierce grin on her face. She was surprised to see Mercury summon her computer to her good hand, and the she dealt a mighty blow to her captor, driving the computer deep into--and she drove her computer deep into the creature's skull, even as her lifeforce was leached out of her by the tentacles that were wrapped around her. The thing holding her screamed one final time before disintegrating, dropping her broken body to the ice. Mercury coughed one final time, and her breathing stopped as she died.
She dropped to the ice. Mars and Venus had let her go, grimly glancing at one another. She felt colder than ever, as sadness for losing a second friend overcame her.
"Amy!!!" she screamed mournfully.
"Let it go!" snapped Mars. "She did her job, what we've all sworn to do! Both of them did!"
"As you have a job to do!" added Venus-
-Huh? blinked Rhodite, a lump in her throat.
Mercury dropped to the ground, computer coated in black ichor. She noticed now that the only light now was man-made; streetlamps, houselights, and the spotlights of the helicopters overhead. The sky was really dark. It took her and the others a second to realize the attack had slacked off, that the army of youmas was suddenly without direction. They glanced over at Rhodite.
She was clutching her head, on her knees. Marius seemed to suddenly take notice, busy as she was spreading the darkness. She blinked, and gritted her teeth. What had those cursed Scouts done to her general? She strode toward her.
"Rhodite!" she snapped.
Images flashed before her, moving so rapidly it hardly seemed plausible she could remember them all. But she did. She remembered every little detail.
-As the laser guns flashed, she pushed off the ground, spinning through the air with blinding quickness, landing on her feet. As she landed, she launched off again, zigzagging too rapidly for the machine to track her, coming behind it and smashing its skull in with one vicious punch, followed by a vicious kick to its chest area. She figured she hit something critical as she dived behind a nearby piece of blackened, twisted metal, hearing the fragments of the exploding robot ping off the metal, to the accompaniment of the flying skulls-
-What is this?-
-An army threatened her. She was already weary, having fought so many, beat up and bleeding from numerous cuts, that she realized to survive, she had one last option. She called upon her greatest power, and in a flash, she was alone, in severe pain... am I dying?
No.
I won't die! I won't give up!
She heard a voice. She weakly opened her eyes. It was--"Rhodite!" snapped Marius.
"Back off!" she screamed. "Leave me alone!"--it was..... her.
"Alone, are we?" her voice crooned evilly. "You've been a lot of trouble, destroying my army like that. Oh, but it's okay... because now, I've got you!"
"Go to hell, Marius," she rasped weakly. Evil laughter answered her-
-Rhodite's eyes snapped open as the scenes replayed themselves in her mind. She staggered to her feet, aware that all attention was on them. She glared at Marius.
"Get back to it!" snapped Marius. "You've got them weakened; finish them off! Use those armies and your powers!"
"Very well," agreed an angry Rhodite. "Attack!" Everyone was extremely surprised to see the army of youmas turn and begin attacking Marius. The Scouts blinked.
"Whatever!" shouted Venus. "Now's our chance! Fry 'em!"
As the Scouts opened up, Marius struggled to regain control of her minions. Nobody really noticed as Rhodite leaned against a tree.
Who am I? she thought. Who am I really? One thing's for sure; all this dark power in me is masking some things!
Marius realized she had done it. She hadn't felt one raking claw... but the casualties...
"MARS SEARING INFERNO!" The last of the youmas fried into a crisp and burst into ashes, blowing away on the breeze.
... were total. Marius gritted her teeth, and turned her attention on Rhodite. The surrounding area was now quite clear, with charred ground bordering on soaked or frozen sections. The fire, and for that matter, the temple, was now completely gone. The Scouts, Marius, and Rhodite were now the only things standing.
"You little wench! I'm going to..." Marius trailed off, realizing what was happening. "Destroy you!"
Rhodite fell to her knees, the inverted black moon on her forehead cracking as her hair blew back in the sudden conflux of power. She screamed as black energy blasted outward.
* * * *
"Juni, I'm not sure what's happening here, but it appears Rhodite is, is, well, I don't know. As I'm sure you saw, she turned on Marius, and now this!"
Perhaps only the two cats in the control center at Sailor Scout Plaza, whose vision was sharper then most, noticed as the black inverted moon blew away into dust, briefly replaced by something else as the woman, now free of the dark energy, collapsed. The cats shared an astonished smile.
* * * *
The Scouts blinked as the final flash cleared the area. Then they looked closer at Rhonda. She was back in her clothing, breathing slowly, in a heap.
"Did Marius take control of her, or is she still evil?" asked Saturn.
"Sailor Mercury?" asked Venus. Mercury already had her ichor-coated computer open and scanning, even as Marius stalked up to the form of Rhonda. She stretched her hand towards her, and dark energy blazed forth, surrounding the blonde, and lifting her off the ground. The energy began ripping through her, and she screamed in agony. Marius threw her viciously. Rhonda smashed through the trunk of a tree that had thus far survived, and she disappeared from view as it crashed down upon her.
Marius turned. She was still fresh, and the Scouts were all badly wounded, and near exhausted. It didn't look good for the good guys.
"You're next!" she said, outstretched hand pointing at them. Energy blasted towards them as they scattered.
"Light her up!" shouted Venus. "VENUS LOVE AND BEAUTY SHOCK!"
"JUPITER OAK EVOULUTION!"
The kinetic blasts from Jupiter's attack knocked Marius off balance as Venus' power smashed into her from behind. Marius picked up Venus, grasping her by the throat.
"Prepare to die, Sailor Venus!" roared Marius. An energy field surrounded the two, preventing the others from intervening.
"Damn!" cursed Mercury. "That field's too strong! There's nothing we can do!" She glared at her computer readouts in sadness and frustration.
"That's right!" cackled Marius. "I win! And now-"
"Stop."
Marius blinked at the voice. She turned her head fractionally, and Venus used the distraction to kick her viciously, causing her to let go. Venus tumbled away, and came to her feet, ready to fight before she realized Marius was still staring at..
Rhonda.
She stood there, looking disheveled, bruised, bloody, and..
Defiant. Determined. At peace.
"That's that, Marius. This is over. There will be no more vicious attacks that devastate whole sections of the city. There will be no more hurting my friends. There will be no more manipulation of me," she said in a straightforward, level voice.
"That's what you think!" Marius growled, unleashing a bolt of dark energy. It streaked towards Rhonda...
And was blocked by a silvery field. Mercury gasped at the readouts as she scanned Rhonda.
"Guys...." she trailed off in astonishment, unable to speak. Her mouth moved, but nothing came out.
"Is that all you have to say, Rhonda?" sneered Marius, building up to another attack. "Or is there something else you want to add?"
"As a matter of fact, I do," Rhonda began. She twirled, in a highly popular move, coming to rest, legs straight, left hand pointing toward the sky and right hand pointing at Marius, head tilted just so. At that very moment, the clouds above parted, and a ray of silvery light lanced down to highlight her as she continued.
"In the name of the Moon, you will be punished!" 'Rhonda' shouted as an upturned, golden crescent moon appeared on her forehead.
"Serena!" Mercury finally managed to get out. All the others were stunned, speechless.
"That's right! Although, the hair kinda throws it off, don't ya think?" she said, smiling. "Let's fix that!" Her hands spread out as a silvery glow bathed her, starting at the moon on her forehead and spreading out. The glow moved faster, and her hair gained the distinct "meatballs" and long ponytails. As the glow moved down, her wounds healed, and as it faded, she raised one hand to the sky.
"I am Serena Tsukino! But more importantly, I am the champion of love and justice! I am... Sailor Moon! MOON HEAVENLY POWER!"
White light burst from her hand, dropping to surround her in silvery ribbons as she called upon her inner strength. When it faded, Sailor Moon stood there, arms crossed.
"And now, Marius.... you're Moondust!" Moon shouted, charging. Marius sidestepped, and as Moon adjusted course, launched a purple bolt at her. Moon leapt over it, extending her leg and nailing Marius with a vicious kick. Marius saw stars as Moon dropped low, sweeping her off her feet. Moon back-flipped clear, and held out her hand, allowing her staff to materialize in it.
"Surely you remember some of the new techniques I picked up fighting your armies?" Moon asked, as she twirled her staff and pointed it at Marius. The tip glowed as Moon charged it. She jumped at Marius, striking hard with her staff. A blinding flash rose as Moon struck her repeatedly, in a frenzy, hitting her hard enough to send her flying upwards. Moon followed, hovering for what seemed like forever, a hundred feet in the air, spinning her staff above her head, which gave the appearance of a solid white disc. As Marius' body fell and impacted on the ground, Moon dropped, supercharged, in a white blur. The ground shook with the force of the blow, and the energy release blasted the sky clear of blackness, once again allowing the rays of the sun to shine on everyone. Moon staggered to her feet, and resolutely prepared to unleash a final assault. Marius unsteadily climbed to her feet, saw what Moon was doing, and her eyes widened.
I will not die like my mother! Damn, I underestimated her! I should have destroyed her years ago while I had the chance! Too cocky! Damn! Who would've thought she could fight that off! She glanced around, spied the portal, and called upon the last of her strength to make a dash for it. Moon noticed.
"Marius!" Moon shouted, chasing after her. She, too, made a mad dash for the portal, to be restrained just shy of it as Marius jumped through and it closed.
She shook off the arms holding her, and turned to face her friends, and was promptly almost crushed in a powerful group hug.
"She can wait! You beat her down!" called Jupiter, tears flowing.
"We just got you back, we aren't losing you again!" sniffed Venus.
Mask didn't say a word, just holding her as their mindlink once again burst full force.
"Besides," said Mercury. "I've got very in-depth readings on the portal."
"How?" asked Earth-Love. Mercury pointed to a nearby building.
"The SDN, remember? I can open a portal when we're all strong enough to go get her!" exclaimed Mercury. Her face was also streaked with tears.
Actually, everyone's face was streaked with tears of joy, and all were smiling through them.
"Besides," Moon said quietly, as the sky overhead streaked with the color of the impending sunset, "I want to look into options of confirming and permanently destroying the Negaverse. We'll have to talk with the Order." The others nodded as they began walking, whole once again, to their home.
As the tears dried, and the applause started, Moon realized she had a bit of catching up to do, especially as they approached the modern structure which bore a large sign on the front of it. The sign was white in color, and centered on the top was a golden, upturned crescent moon. Beneath it, in bold letters, it proudly proclaimed:
SAILOR SCOUT PLAZA
"For Love And Justice"
Moon smiled as the sun went down. She was back. She knew she had a lot of work ahead of her, but none of that mattered right now, as she basked in the happiness of her friends.
Above her, the new moon slowly increased in brightness as day became night, and the soft glow caressed the city. Stars began to twinkle.
"I'm home."
The End
(Of this series, anyway!)
*Well, I hope everyone enjoyed this series. I sure had fun writing it! Whew! What a ride! Well, I'm going to be focusing my efforts on my new storyline, "LUNAR: Tales From Crystal Tokyo". Stop by and check it out!
http://www.vegasnet.net/~daman187/lunarmain.htm
Any questions or comments should be directed to me at daman187@vegasnet.net. Thanks again, everybody!