Chapter 417
"Didn't expect this did ya?" Queen Galaxia said striding forward as well.
"I will defeat all of you!" Sailor Moon said. "No one's getting in my way."
"Oh I really doubt that!" Queen Galaxia said.
"Yes, I think it's our turn to win for once," King Metalis said.
"That day will never come!" Sailor Moon shouted unleashing her energy attack. The enemies all leapt into it and blocked it.
"Our combined strength is above yours," Metalis said.
"You'll never get to your friend now," Galaxia said.
"Then I'll just have to come to her!" came a shout.
Sailor Mars leapt forward spewing fire. The group all whirled. Mars vaulted over them.
"Mars! How are you..." Sailor Moon said.
"There is no time for questions!" Sailor Saturn said leaping to the ground.
"You two get out of here!" she shouted.
"But.."
"This realm is under attack..I must stabilize it..." Saturn said
A light shot from her tiara and knocked the enemies all back.
"My power here is not as strong as it once was. You two must return at once," Saturn said.
"But what about you?" Sailor Moon asked.
"I will return to you when this crisis is over..."
"You can do that?" Mars asked.
"Most assuredly," Saturn said. "But not if you don't leave! Go!"
"Thank you Saturn," Sailor Moon said.
"Go please," Saturn said.
"Come on Serena!" Mars said. The two turned and hurried down the street.
Sailor Saturn whirled and faced down the massive horde of enemies.
"You are becoming quite a problem," she said.
"It's only going to get worse!" Galaxia shouted charging forward. The rest of the enemies followed.
Saturn's eyes narrowed.
"You're not going to get me today!"Guardian Pluto shouted and sending a blast flying through the air.
"Oh.give it up!" Sulcar said diving on him. He avoided it as well as an attack from Mivxsati.
"You do not want to fight me when I'm mad!" Pluto shouted shooting off energy in all directions.
Viniver lined up and fired knocking him to the ground.
Pluto stood right back up and fired a massive barrage of sword energy. Viniver was thrown off his perch.
Mivxsati and Sulcar pounced knocking Pluto to the ground.
"You can only keep this up so long!" Mivxsati shouted.
"Yep, let's see if you survive it!" Pluto shouted jabbing his sword straight through the ninja.
Sulcar glided upward.
"He's not supposed to be this good, but so it's a little challenge," the
flyer said and swung downward.
"You can't win this one Jupiter!" Caria shouted. "I'm as much a telepath here as anywhere else!"
Her attack shot out and hit Jupiter again. Chigta raced forward.
Jupiter grinned and hit him with the full force of an attack.
"Sorry..Caria, but I have no time for your games!" Jupiter shouted.
"Hmm...very well," Caria said and shot an even stronger telepathic blast his way. He let out a shout of pain, but still fired in her direction. She dodged out of the way.
"Lucky I still have a couple of these," Adrovan said flinging a bomb.
Jupiter was blasted back. He slowly stood up.
"Oh dear..he still wants to fight does he?" Caria said. "You two cover me..I'm going to destroy his mind."
"Right!" Adrovan said. He and Chigta stood defending Caria. Jupiter glared at them.
"I doubt I have much time.." he said. "But..very well.."
He advanced slowly.
Chigta let out a roar and charged spewing energy. Jupiter waited until the last minute and then dodged him swinging his sword through him.
Adrovan tensed and threw a couple more bombs. Jupiter bounced off a wall and blasted them, whirled and unleashed his attack.
"You fools!" Caria shouted and let her mind attack as she was blasted with the energy. She was thrown back.
Jupiter slumped to the ground.
"HAH HAHHAHAH!" Sulcar laughed as he dived. Pluto dodged another bomb.
"I'm just too fast!" Sulcar said.
"Not really," Pluto said.
"What does that mean!" He shouted knocking Pluto to the ground.
"I'm not going to say," Pluto said.
"What? Why?"
"Because!" Pluto shouted and leapt onto a fire escape. "I can jump!"
He fired blasting Sulcar into a rooftop. He then dropped bounced off another roof's edge and leapt at him.
Sulcar whirled and threw another bomb. Pluto unleashed an attack it exploded
throwing him front of the roof.
"Where exactly are we going?" Mars snapped.
"I don't remember..the landscape seems to have changed" Sailor Moon said worriedly.
"Oh it has," The guide said.
"Then where do we go!" Sailor Moon shouted.
"And why should I help you now. You said I was useless."
"I was wrong, really wrong, show me the way."
"Nah.." the guide said.
"Hey..you jerk!" Mars shouted and blasted him.
"He had it coming," Sailor Moon said.
"But we have to find someway out of here," Mars said. "And why is the sky darkening! I thought this was supposed to be a peaceful afterlife."
"I think something very wrong is happening," Sailor Moon said.
"Yes...I'm getting that sense too, but I don't think there's anything we can do about it."
"I know," Sailor Moon said.
"You girls look like you need some help," came a voice.
"DAD!" Mars said.
"Yep, here I am..let's go. We'll get you out of here before the storm hits."
"What kind of storm is it?" Mars asked.
"Oh don't worry, it's not a big deal," her father said.
"You're lying," Mars said. "I can see it in your face."
"You always knew...don't worry...we'll get through it," her father said.
"You're not very sure of that," Mars said.
"No..but we are facing our own challenge, but we'll prevail."
"I...do you need help?"
"Absolutely not, you girls have to get back to your own world," her father said. "You can help more there."
"I just don't like the idea of leaving before.." Mars said.
"We'll manage," Her father said.
"Oh.all right.." Mars said.
"Taiki?" came a voice.
Jupiter's eyes opened. He looked up right into the face of Sailor Mercury.
"Mercury...you're.."
"I'm here..yes.." Mercury said. "You don't look so good."
"I have to bring you back.."
"I know..come on..." Mercury said.
"How did you..."
"There are some strange things happening here," Mercury said. "I'm not sure what yet....but it's really beyond my realm of expertise."
"I guess you're right," Jupiter said. "Let's go."
"Thank you for coming to get me."
"What else did you expect?"
Mercury smiled.
"And this is just what I expected to find, you beat up.." came a voice. Pluto's eyes snapped open.
"Lita!" He said and instantly hugged her.
"Wha.okay.." Jupiter said.
"Sorry..sorry.." Pluto said.
"You okay?" Jupiter asked.
"Are you?"
"I'm dead..what more can you say?"
"We should go.." Jupiter said.
"Right..right..yes we should," Pluto said.
"So you...really do love me?"
"Come on, that was a given."
"So it was."
"And I fought well today..really.."
"I know.." Lita said. "Finally."
"This is no time to be critical of your rescuer."
"No I guess it isn't," Lita said.
"Oh..hey...you two," Mercury said.
"Ah...I see you managed to survive too," Guardian Jupiter said.
"It was close," Guardian Pluto said.
"Ahem.." a guide said. "I suggest you all get out of here right now. This world is becoming quite a maelstrom."
"What's happening?" Mercury asked.
"Uh.it's really not for me to say..I just suggest you go," the guide said.
"Then let's get out of here!" Jupiter said.
The group was soon racing through the streets.
"You're back!" Sailor Venus shouted happily.
"Guess we are," Mars said.
"That was weird," Sailor Moon said. "But here we are."
"Oh...what..happened," Mercury said.
Venus just cried some more.
"Thank goodness," Sailor Pluto said.
"They're survivors," Tuxedo Mask said.
"I'm so glad you're all okay," Sailor Moon said clad in the simple red white and blue uniform she had begun with. Her power was sapped back down to the levels of her last year in Junior High School. "I.."
She collapsed.
"Sailor Moon!" The others said with concern.
"I think the stress has gotten to her," Tuxedo Mask said.
"And who would blame her," Sailor Pluto said.
Back in Tokyo.
"Ehh..ouch.." Lita said waking up. "Hi everyone."
The scouts managed to smile.
"Ehh..that was needlessly messy," Steve said.
"Where's Hotaru?" Michiru asked.
"We didn't see her," Lita said.
"Yeah..what happened with that?"
"I don't know what's happening," Michiru said. "Don't tell me she's still in there."
"She wouldn't!" Greg said.
"Calm down, there's probably some sort of rational explanation!" Haruka said.
"Rational?" Greg asked. "How is any of this rational?"
Their communicators went off. They all pulled them out.
"Ah there you are.. How are things?" Setsuna asked.
"Where's Hotaru?" Greg asked.
"She remained in the afterlife, but she'll return," Setsuna said.
"What? How?"
"She is the Sailor of Death, she can do that," Setsuna said. "Don't worry, you'll see her again."
"I had better," Greg said and headed off.
"Is Lita fine?"
"Yes," Haruka said. "But we've got much deeper problems. The enemy is getting more vicious."
"I am well aware of that, it is time to modify our strategy," Setsuna said.
"I am pleased with your progress Sorophyte," Ircanite said. "The scouts are being picked off one by one, which means that when we finally attack they will have no recourse. When they die, they will die..."
"That's the idea," Sorophyte said. "I admit that perhaps my attempts to mess up the afterlife have not exactly worked entirely, but Sailor Saturn has had to remain there to keep things going."
"Yes..and that is a plus," Ircanite said. "So what is our next move?"
"Our next move...hmm...well..how are the crystals coming."
"The scouts are slowly acquiring them..you know that."
"Ah...you think so do ya?"
"Oh what it is now that you've done?"
"Allow me to introduce a couple other of my pet projects."
Two figures emerged from the shadows.
"Ah..I see.." Ircanite said. "But can they be trusted?"
"Of course not," Sorophyte said. "However, they can still be useful. And they brought these."
He held out several more crystals.
Ircanite grinned.
"Excellent," he said.
"There are only ten more crystals left," Sorophyte said. "And I believe we can get most of them before the scouts even realize what is happening."
"Yes, I think you're right. And this will give us the power we need to win," Ircanite said. "Yes excellent job. So are they going to go get the crystals now?"
"Hmm..no I thought I'd leave that to our remaining minions. I believe these two would be far more useful to kill Sailor Moon."
"Yes...I can see that," Ircanite said. "So how about it Malachite, Zoisite. Are you up for it."
"Absolutely," Malachite said.
"Just tell us where she is," Zoisite said.
"Allow me to lead the way," Sorophyte said and headed out. The two followed.
"Yes, this may work out quite well," Ircanite said.
"It's a pity you know," Setsuna said.
"A pity?" Darrien asked.
"Their young lives spent like this," Setsuna said. "It's tragic really. But what else can we do?"
"It's fortunate in a way that they're all so strong," Darrien said.
"Yes, I suppose, but still the pressure on them is enormous, and now most of them have died or watched one of their loved ones die...this will be a true test," Setsuna said.
"They'll survive. They always do," Darrien said.
"This is no time to resort to blind faith," Setsuna said. "This is an ending. It may not be the final one, but there will be changes..regardless of what course is followed. That I know."
"Endings can sometimes be a good thing. A clearing of the air."
"Yes that's true, but I fear the other kinds," Setsuna said.
"I don't blame you," Darrien said. "Still.....you can't help but think they'll win.."
"But at what cost," Setsuna said.
"You all right Greg?" Rick asked.
"I never will be..ever again.." Greg said. "I want him..."
"Who?"
"Sorophyte..I want him bad," Greg said.
"Now..calm down..that's not rational..look..we're doing okay."
"How can you say that...you almost lost Raye today. I don't know if I'll ever see Hotaru again and this war keeps going on and on. We have better things to do you know. And what about school, we aren't even bothering with that right now..I have to think about my future, and instead I don't see one."
"Now you've got to come back to reality here," Rick said.
"Reality? When has this ever been about reality!"
"Uh..perhaps I used the wrong word, but Greg, let's think through this clearly all right?"
"Try me," Greg snapped.
"I'm not just going to leave," Rick said. "So you're stuck with me anyway. So listen up. Greg, it's not fair, it's not right, and we may all end up pretty messed up by the end of it, but right now we're alive. Hotaru is too..you know that. We have a duty, passed down to us unfortunately, but we have to do it. Now is not the time to get despondent. We gotta fight em, we gotta stop em so the rest of the world doesn't feel the pain that we do."
"And why not let them feel the pain. Why just us! What made us so special that we have to carry all this on our shoulders!"
"Greg..I know..I know..it stinks..but what else can we do right now? You going to let your father feel this pain, you going to let all your friends get caught up in it. Can you abandon them now?"
"Of course I can't! But I'm getting quite sick of it! I'm not supposed to be a fighter! None of us are you know!"
"Yeah, that's the problem, but look..I'm no telepath, but I know all of us are going to be needed. Believe me I know what you're saying. I know..look..Greg..for years..all of you had been able to survive, knowing that if you died, the one you loved could come and save you, but I didn't have that safety net, and yet I got up and I raced into battle, knowing I could die...and that it would be the end...I hated it..I can't say it's been very healthy..but I did it..I had to."
"I'm sorry that you had to," Greg said. "But...Rick..what are we doing here in this messed up universe?"
"Now..that's a question I'm not touching," Rick said. "Look..the two of us..let's get through this like we should. Let's get tough and stop them first..then if you want to collapse...I'll go with you.."
"Hmm..I really have no choice," Greg said.
"Not right now.." Rick said.
Greg sighed.
"Well.....then..Rick...I'm sure they're up to something?"
"Who?"
"The enemy. This doesn't make sense."
"What do you mean?"
"Rick..get the Guardian Scouts together."
"Why just them?"
"Because...we're going to find out..."
"All right."
Tokyo General Hospital.
"Isn't he ever going to wake up?" Ai asked staring at the limp form of Sai.
"His wounds were serious," Akiro said. "But he'll be fine..the scout healing process will heal him, but I think his injuries were so bad, it's taken a long time."
"I just hate seeing him lying there, weakened.."
"Yeah me too..it's sobering..but..he'll pull through," Akiro said.
"I hope so," Ai said. "I always worry. I just want to see his scowling face again."
"Me too," Akiro said.
"This war really is cutting in to all of our hearts..more then ever before."
"Yeah.." Akiro said.
"You think we'll win this one too?"
"You know us."
"Yes, but seriously."
"Ai, I try not to think about those things, I just do what I have to."
"Me too.."
"You think we'll have beautiful children someday?"
"Wha..." Akiro said. "Oh of course...."
"Me too."
"Lita...you feeling better?" Michiru asked.
"Oh sure, not going to let a little death mess me up," Lita said. "Have you seen Steve?" she asked.
"Greg and Rick came by looking for him. They're off talking about something."
"Oh..I see.."
"So..Lita does this mean that you and Steve are back together?"
"Yep, this time we're going to do it right," Lita said.
"I'm happy to see you've recovered so well."
"I'm not sure I have recovered yet," Lita said.
"Oh..I understand," Michiru said.
"Guess this has really gotten serious," Lita said.
"That it has," Michiru said.
"I'm ready. You ready?"
"I'm always ready, whether I like it or not."
"Yeah..I guess you've learned to be that way."
"We've come up with the latest strategy plan," Haruka said. "Where is everyone else?"
"That's a good question," Michiru said.
"Greg I'm curious, just what are we doing here?" Taiki asked.
"All right I'll explain it," Greg said.
"I guess I'm a little late," Akiro said walking in. "What's happening?"
"He was just about to tell us," Seiya said.
"The enemy is up to something," Greg said. "I can't tell you what. But our latest opponent has shown himself to be quick to run despite having great power. Also we see Ircanite failing to attack us, being almost conservative. Now I believe that his goal is something in this city. The question is what is it."
"How would we go about finding that out?" Yaten asked.
"By looking for it," Greg said. "Now all of them have a very low opinion of the Guardian Scouts, you notice they're much quicker to go after the girls. So..that's one advantage."
"Maybe there's something to that line of thought though," Mike said.
"Not this time," Greg said. "This time we surprise them all."
"Sounds like a plan," Akiro said. "So what's next?"
"We find out just what Sorophyte is doing, and the best way to do that is to scour the city looking for anything unusual," Greg said.
"That's going to take a lot of work," Steve said.
"You not up to it?" Greg snapped.
"No..I'll do it," Steve said.
"Look it's a long shot, but I believe we can mess up their whole plan if we figure out just what they are doing."
"I think you're right," Taiki said. "If we can find out what they're doing."
"It should be as hard as it seems," Patterson said walking in with a cane in one hand.
"About time you got back," Akiro said.
"Greg..it's an ambitious plan, but you're right, whoever this enemy of ours is, he is being careful trying to keep us from noticing something else. And I think we're more than capable of figuring out just what he's hiding."
The group all nodded.
"I'm up for it," Seiya said. "But this will be the first time we've really done anything as a team."
"And it will be the most important time too," Greg said. "This is the time when the Guardian Scouts finally prove themselves!"
The group all looked at each other.
"So are we agreed?" Greg asked.
The group all nodded.
399 400 401 402 403 404 405 406 407 408