The Starlight Tower
“How
many?” Flute asked.
“Three.” the snakeman reported, “Sailors Moon, Mercury, and Mars.” He waited for his master to turn around. Flute did not. He continued to glare down from the hundredth floor at the shattered city beneath.
“Are you absolutely sure it was them?”
“It was the Sailor Scouts, sir. I know it. I saw them myself.”
“You may go.” Flute gave a wave of his hand. When he sensed the soldier gone, he tapped his commline. “Jekter, come here.”
“On my way, sir.”
“Bring Meredith with you.”
“Yes, sir.”
“We just got lucky I guess.” Serena said. “After Jupiter got killed and the Starlight Asylum blew, we had to find some place where we could get food. We could use what was left in the vending machines and pressure tanks here until Amy built this.” And she pointed to the distiller machine.
Rei had heard about Jupiter already. “I’m glad she took that Negaverse bastard with her when she went.”
“So you never told us why you did come back.” Amy spoke up. “From what you tell us, you had it great in Seattle.”
“I knew something had happened to you.”
“Us?” Amy raised an eyebrow. She had not yet told her Japanese friend about what was going on inside her body.
“No.” Rei shook her head, “I mean to you, Ams. I kept having this dream about a glowing light in your stomach.” She gave Amy the infamous hard stare. The blue hared girl drew her arms close and returned it with a much more surprised gaze. “You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”
“Well,” Amy flushed bright red in humiliation, “yes, I am.”
“How long?” Rei asked, softening her look.
“Two months.” Amy replied tersely.
“How...”
“Rei, I really don’t want to talk about it.” Amy snapped fiercely. The short genius quickly turned away and ran to her room.
“Amy!” Rei called after her and prepared to pursue. Serena caught her by the shoulder. Rei gave her a fiery glare, but Serena calmly shook her head. “Why not, Serena?”
“Because Amy said ‘no.’” Serena responded.
“But I just want to know what happened.”
Serena thought it over for a moment, but finally decided it was okay to let Rei know. “We were out trading water one afternoon. Three guys jumped us and toted her off. They beat her up pretty bad, and one of them raped her. I tried to help, but I got there too late. Anyway, she doesn’t like being reminded of it.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, we had to go to the hospital. Her mother was there...”
“Amy’s mom is alive?”
“Yeah, she did Amy’s check-up.”
“And?”
“Well, aside from being pregnant, Amy has HIV.”
“Oh, my God.” Rei’s eyes went wide, “So why isn’t she staying there to be treated?”
Serena shrugged “She wants to get rid of the Negaverse first, I guess.”
“I think that’s something we all want to do.”
“No.” Flute corrected, “Three are still alive. Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars, and that brat, Princess Serena are still out there to oppose us. This does not please me, Jekter!”
“I know, sir.” Jekter bowed in appology. “I am sorry for my mistake. It just appeared to my scanner that they were indeed gone.”
“No time for your sniveling appology, boy.” Flute growled, “Your need to hurry up this campaign has left us vulnerable, if today was not proof enough of that!” He turned to Meredith, “How competent is the Jigsaw Man?”
Meredith smiled, “He is very secure in his abilities, sir. May I remind you that he did kill Sailor Venus.”
“I remember.” Flute said, “Where is he now?”
“He is rounding up those of our army who were stranded here.”
“Send him out to look for the Scouts as soon as possible.”
“He will succeed in destroying them.” Meredith nodded.
“Are you willing to bet your life on that?” Flute smirked, then turned away. The look in his eyes told Jekter that he meant what he said.
“Yeah.” the raven haired girl confirmed. “My uncle arranged it. The pilots flew me down and spent the next few hours getting people to go live in Seattle. They left the day after delivering me with a full load.”
“Seattle sounds like it was nice.” Serena said, “It’s just deteriorated around here.”
“Yeah, the hospital is the only thing that stays in any order.” Amy smirked, “Lucky for me, huh?” and she coldly patted her tummy.
Rei quickly changed the subject. “So how did you build that distiller, anyway?”
“Oh, come on,” Amy smirked, “You don’t really want to hear the whole physics of the thing, do you?”
“In truth?” the temple maiden said, “no.”
Amy stared hard, and reached a hand toward Serena, “Would you please hand me that pillow next to you so that I might throw it at Rei.” And a mischeivious smiled crawled across Amy’s cheeks.
“Sure thing.” Serena gave Amy the pillow, which was promptly thrown and hit Rei in the head.
“Ami-chan!” Rei laughed, and threw it back at her short-haired friend. “It’s good to know we can still have fun.”
Earth really was a beautiful planet. Jigsaw Man felt almost sorry that its population had chosen to abuse it rather that use it wisely. Even these smashed and shattered buildings must have taken numerous mines and quarrys to draw the metals and stone to build them. And air which should have been pristine was soured with industrial advancement. That they had chosen to ruin their home only made the Jigsaw Man hate the pink-skinned bags of water and carbon even more.
And the fact that the Scouts defended these insolent wastrels was simply appaling.
There! They must be in that building. He flipped his scanner out to make sure. Inside were three human females, all of them matched profiles of the Sailor Scouts. It was time to do some work.
“Whatever it is,” Serena raised her locket, “it’s time we transformed.”
“Yeah!” the two other girls agreed. In flashes of fire and water, they were replaced by Sailors Mars and Mercury. Serena was soon surounded by blinding light as her uniform materialized around her.
“Come on,” Sailor Moon prepared to charge upstairs.
“Wait!” Mercury said, “I have an even better idea.” And she pulled out her computer. Scanning, she discovered who their enemy was. “It’s the one that got Venus.”
“Good.” Mars snarled, “I been waiting to do some payback.” Mercury ignored the comment and continued typing away on her comp. She worked feverishly, as they could now hear footsteps above them.
“Okay, here’s the plan.” the aquabelle stated, “We have to lure him down here. I’m going to project a holographic image of us against the window. When he fires at it, the glass will break and the water will flood in.”
“But Mercury,” the moon princess asked, “won’t we be down here.”
“Yes.” she asnwered, “I know it’s risky, but it will probably be the quickest way to dispatch of him.”
“Alright, let’s do it Scouts!” and the three of them charged upstairs.
The door creaked and Sailor Moon emerged. “Where are you, you negaverse slug?” she snapped. and she took a few steps into the hallway. Following were Sailor Mars and Sailor Mercury.
He allowed them to come down the hall, closer to him. Just as Mars passed what he deemed as the point of no return, Jigsaw Man wheeled around the corner and threw the batch of puzzle pieces he’d been charging in his hand. At point-blank range, Sailor Moon was knocked down with a scream and the two other Scouts reeled.
“Go!” the moonchild shouted. “Head for the door.”
He could tell this enemy was dangerous. He had seen the Jigsaw Man in action before, and it had not been pretty. But he was prepared for the fight. All he had to do was be patient as darkness fell over the land and his enemy emerged.
Soon, they were in the mildewy and humid area where Serena lived. She reflected momentarily that she’d have to move upstairs, then moved on. “You got that hologram ready Mercury.”
“Yes, it’s ready to go.” the water scout replied, “Find someplace to hide, and hold your breath when the glass breaks. And hold on to something, the water rush will hit you like concrete.
“Right, let’s go.” and the three of them split up. As Sailor Moon threw a glance back over her shoulder, she could see the holographic picture materialize before the window. She dove into a closet and waited.
She was hiding behind a doorway that led into what must have once been an small apothecary, for the shelves were lined with over-the-counter medicines. Momentarily, she reflected that Amy always managed to find the best places to hide out. She almost wanted to look across the hall and give Mercury a smirking shake of the head, as she could see the aquabelle hiding behind the security desk of the entrance. The sudden crash from behind the stairwell made her duck back behind the door. The Jigsaw Man must have slipped on some of Mercury’s ice.
It was quiet for another moment and the fire scout almost popped out of her hiding place to make sure the dreadful pile of puzzle parts hadn’t been killed in the fall. But just as her head emerged from behind the corner, the steel door crashed open and the Jigsaw Man stood there, the embodiment of rage.
He scanned the room, and his eyes fell upon the hologram. He collected some of his little weapons in his had and prepared to fling them. “Die, sailor brats!” he shouted, and the glowing orbs flew across the void at the image. It did not register in the Jigsaw Man’s head when his projectiles went right through the Scouts. Nor did it entirely bother him when the window behind them shattered and water began rushing in. It happened so fast, that he was aware of it only when the torrent crashed into him, crushing him against the wall.
A moment
later, more windows shattered and the flood increased in size. Sailor Mars
took a deep breath just before she was knocked backwards and carried away
by the water.
Sailor Moon heard the roar of the water rushing into the building, and soon she saw water seeping beneath the door of her hiding place. Time to make an exit. Yet as she turned the knob and pushed, the door did not open. The tons of water must be pressing from the other side. She would have to wait fo the closet to fill up before she opened it.
The sea was rapidly replacing the air, but there was still a pocket above her, She surfaced and to breath for a moment and get her bearings. The water had carried her down a hallway, and she had to swim back to the lobby before making her exit. The ceiling tiles, she noticed, were removeable. If the water filled the entire floor, she could knock a tile out and take a breath.
She dove back into the cold water and began swimming towards escape.
As she entered the large floorspace of the lobby, she couldn’t see the other Scouts. Either they must have gotten out already or...
Wait, Serena had hid in that closet, and the door wasn’t open yet. She swam to it, and pounded on the door.
Not quite panicked yet, she watched as the water squirted in above and below the door. It was rising quickly enough, so maybe she would get out before the pressure inside got high enough to be crushing.
As the water came up over her shoulders, there was a pounding on the door. The moonchild hesitated, wondering if it might be the Jigsaw Man slamming and angry fist at the entrance to her hiding place. When the pounding repeated, Sailor Moon decided to take her chances. She responded with three wraps.
There was suddenly a hand on her shoulder, and she turned to see the blue eyes of Sailor Mercury. The aquabelle pointed upward, and the two came near the ceiling. Mercury hit a tile with her fist and it was knocked away. Mars did the same and the Scouts surfaced above the ceiling.
“What’s wrong?” Mercury asked between gasps.
“Serena’s still in that closet. I can’t get it open.” Mars answered. “And I can’t pull too hard, my ribs are still way sore.”
“Okay,” the water scout thought a moment, “Is there any way you know of that she can crawl out through the closet?”
“Not that I can see.”
“Well then we’ll both have to pull.” Mercury said before going back under, “Come on.” The two swam back down again. The pressure was such that Mars’s ears ached when she could touch her feet.
There was two sets of knocks at the door, and Sailor Moon realized they had both come to rescue her. She responded, and then there was a turn of the knob. The moon princess put her hand on hers and began pushing hard, setting her legs against the wall opposite the door. There was a slight crack and the water quickly rushed in, blinding her with its salty sting. She felt a hand on each of her wrists and felt herself glide to the water. Aiding in her own rescue, she kicked her legs and then took control of her own swimming. The three Sailor Scouts surfaced soon afterward.
“Is he gone?” Mars asked as they all gasped.
“I think so.” Mercury said, not willing to flip her computer open. Satisfied that they had defeated the monster, the team began swimming ashore.
“Whooo! Is it cold?” Sailor Moon said as they stood knee-deep in the water. Her teeth began chattering as she bundled herself up. “Nice plan Mercury.” she smirked, “Seeing as how it almost got us all killed.”
“Hey, cool it.” Mercury retorted, “At least it worked.”
“No it didn’t!” Mars took hold of the aquabelle’s shoulder. The other two turned to look where Mars was pointing. Not far from them was a soaked but very alive Jigsaw Man. His arm was raised and ready to deliver another barrage. Mercury got the jump.
“Shine Aqua Illision,” and the ball of water froze nearly everything it hit. The Jigsaw Man had dove out of the way and was now charging. Mars tried her Celestial Fire next, but with no effect.
The wildly angery monster threw his weapons, which scattered Mars and Mercury. Sailor Moon, didn’t get off so quickly. He instantly pounced on her, knocking her to the ground as she turned to run. She was knocked flat and he pinned her down with his knees.
Out of the corner of her eye, Serena could see him double his fists and raise his hands to deliver a crushing blow to her skull. “I’ve been waiting or this a long time moonbrat.” he said. The moon princess shut her eyes, hoping the other scouts could do something.
Suddenly, there was a white flash that pierced her eyelids and a metallic smack not three feet from her head. The Jigsaw Man howled and got off her. She opened her eyes to see a single rose, this time snow-white, stuck into he ground.
“It’s a pity such a beautiful sunset had to be disturbed by such a hidious creature.” A familiar voice said, “Don’t you agree, Sailor Moon.”
Surprised even more, Serena turned over and looked for the origin of the voice. He was above her, on the roof of a short building across the street from the hideaway. He was dressed in white Arab robes with a turban on his head and a veil covering all but the bright blue eyes. A scimtar was tucked into the sash around his waste and a white rose was in his hand, ready to be thrown. The clasp of his cape showed a yellow crescent moon against the blackness of space.
“The Moonlight Knight.” Sailor Mercury stated the obvious. The man leapt from the building, he cape spreading behind him as he drew the golden-hilted scimtar. He landed aside the still howling Jigsaw man and with one swipe, cut off the hand he had just thrown the rose through. The creature shreiked again and made a grab for the Moonlight Knight, but the agile warrior leapt out of the way and sliced off the other hand.
“I think it’s your turn.” he offered to Sailor Moon. The girl nodded, charged up the Moon Scepter, and dusted the Jigsaw Man.
The Moonlight Knight was silent until the last of the dust had been carried away by the wind. “It’s good to see him go.”
“You remember?” Serena, now her normal self, went wide-eyed.
The Moonlight Knight pulled his veil down, revealing Darien’s face. “I’m Darien’s soul, remember? I experience everything he does.”
“But why are you here?” Amy asked as she approached, “I though that you only existed if Darien was...” her voice trailed off. The Moonlight Knight left no answer to the last part of the question. Only the first.
“I am here to avenge the physical death of Darien.”
“What?” all three Sailors were shocked.
“My duty, now, is to locate Jekter and defeat him.”
“Who is Jekter?” Reiko asked.
“He’s the warrior that killed my Darien.” Serena’s face was hard.
“Is he the leader?” Rei continued her questioning.
“No.” Amy shook her head, “Whoever controls the Pluto Star Crystal is.”
“The what?” Rei asked. “I thought Sailor Pluto had that? Is she behind all this?”
“I asked the same question.” Serena said.
“No,” Amy answered Rei, “Someone must have killed her, infused it with Negative energy, and used its power to annahilate our defenses so that he could invade.”
“Why didn’t he do it before-hand?” the japanese girl wasn’t convinced, “And why didn’t he just invade on the day he did this?”
“Something tells me he’s cautious.” Amy repsonded, “Something about how he waited so long and is sending his people after us one by one.” She stopped to think for a moment. There was a game she had in mind. She hadn’t played it in almost a year, but she had once been able to win with one move. “Oh, my God.”
“What is it, Amy?” Serena asked.
“Chess.”
“What?”
“He’s playing chess.” Amy replied without looking at her, “That’s how he sees this twisted campaign of his. He makes a move and waits for our response to that move.”
“But wouldn’t our response be to kill his monsters?”
Amy half ignored her, using that question in her line of reasoning. “He sends out a pawn, we kill it. He sends out another, we kill that one. He destroys our world, we regroup. He sends another monster, kills Sailor Venus, we run him off. Him, us, him, us.” she continued thinking. Then, her eyes brightened in a way they hadn’t for months. She snapped her fingers, “Check!”
“What is it?” Serena askes.
“He’ll wait for our move now. He wants to know whether his monster killed us. We’ll let him know otherwise.” and she plucked a small box from the tattered clothes of the vanquished monster. After analyzing, she confirmed that it was indeed a communicator.
Elated, Serena snatched it. Amy and Rei watched rather proudly as she activated it and said teasingly into the microphone “missed me!”
“Sir?” she was surprised.
“Come here!”
“On my way.” He picked up the sceptor with the Pluto Crystal inside it and waited. The instant she appeared at the door, he bade her come in.
“Is something wrong sir?” He noticed jekter was with her, Good.
“Damn straight something is wrong.” he snapped, “The Jigsaw Man failed!”
Meredith bowed. “I am sorry sir. I will make another, stronger monster.”
“There will be no more next time.” and in that instant, he shot her with the sceptor. She fell backward, dead before she hit the floor. Jekter was surprisingly quiet, though his face was hiding shock. “Let that be a lesson to you, Jekter. I will accept no more failures in destroying the Sailor Scouts!”
“Yes sir.”
“Now find them and kill them!”