Author's Note: If you wish to comment on my story, either positively or negatively, don't hesitate to contact me at treetop@voicenet.com. Sailor Moon and all related characters are the property of Takeuchi Naoko, Toei Animation and DIC. All references to Vulcan are the province of Gene Roddenberry and Paramount Studios. So, please, don't sue me because I haven't any money. I do this strictly for entertainment purposes, not copyright infringement.

Across The Millennia
by Jeffrey C. Branch
Part Four: A Heroine Is Reborn
Rating: PG-13

The Sailor Scouts and Tuxedo Mask were stunned to see the purple skirted girl pronounce herself as being one of them. And yet, they were puzzled because Sailor Vulcan was totally unfamiliar to them.

However, she was very familiar to Serena who, still in Mask's arms broke out in a smile of blessed relief.

"Talia! It's Talia!" she cried.

"What? That girl you were so frantic over?" Mask asked.

With a casual ease, Sailor Vulcan leaped off the girder, performed a perfect mid-air somersault over the four elemental creatures who were startled by her sudden appearance and touched down in front of the Scouts.

"Greetings. It is good to see you all again," she said to the others who were wide eyed at seeing her. Vulcan then looked at Serena and bowed. "I am glad you are well, my Princess. My apologies for not having arrived sooner."

Serena, overjoyed, felt like crying. "Nobody's perfect, Tal. And don't call me Princess."

Torrent, the water creature, on the other hand was annoyed. "Enough with the sappy reunion! You're turning my stomach! Our job is to kill that broad, and we mean to do just that!"

Vulcan turned and glared at the creatures. "I cannot allow you to do that. I am tasked with protecting the Princess. To get to her, you will have to go through me. I would advise you to not make the attempt."

"Sorry! I'm no good at taking advice! Waste 'em!"

Torrent unleashed twin jets of water from his arms while Inferno, the flame creature hurled fireballs, Cyclone, the air being unleashed wind blasts and Stonecutter, the rock monster slammed his fists on the ground, cracking open the ground, but none of their attacks came close to the Scouts who dodged the barrage. Vulcan regarded the creatures with abject scorn.

"Foolish creatures. It is time to reap what you have sown." As everyone watched, Vulcan crossed her forearms over her chest and a gleaming, golden ball of light enveloped her as she felt her long dormant power roaring to life. In spite of herself, Vulcan grinned. The power felt so intoxicating.

"Vulcan Shockwave....STRIKE!" she bellowed.

Before the creatures could react, Vulcan thrust her arms outward and the energy sphere was sent hurtling at them with blinding speed. The ground itself rippled in the wake of the sphere as it rapidly grew in size before colliding with the monsters with an ear piercing crack like thunder that blew them away, rattled windows for a square mile all around and knocked everyone save for Vulcan off their feet. Without waiting for the others, the enigmatic Scout went after the creatures.

Sailor Mercury, having taken out her mini-computer when Vulcan used her powers was stunned at the readings she saw. "Good Lord! According to my readings, that energy blast packed one hundred times the concussive force of a sonic boom! Sailor Vulcan's power may well be greater than even ours!"

"Then it's a good thing she's on our side! Even if I've never seen her before!" said Sailor Jupiter.

"Yes you have, Lita. We all have," said a smiling Serena, wiping her eyes. "Back on the Moon! I can't understand why you don't remember her!"

"Serena's right! That's definitely Princess T'alya of Vulcan!" said Luna, running up to the Scouts and Tuxedo Mask. "She's one of us! I'll explain later! For now, she's got those creatures on the ropes! Let's give her a hand!"

Serena nodded and stood, clutching her brooch. "You got it, Luna! Cosmic Moon Power!" Crimson bands of energy blossomed from Serena's brooch, enveloping her body, bathing it in tremendous power from the Imperium Silver Crystal while altering her clothes into the uniform of the leader of the Sailor Scouts, the Champion of Justice, Sailor Moon.

"It's about time, you crybaby!" growled Sailor Mars. She was openly suspicious about the newest Scout. "Let's trash those freaks! And fast! We've got a mystery to solve about that girl!"

Torrent's ears, or what passed for ears while in his liquid state were ringing like Big Ben in stereo as he struggled to sit up. He was weak, disoriented and found he had trouble maintaining his solidity.

"Did somebody get the license number of the cruise missile that hit me?" he muttered. "Haven't felt this wasted since my cousin's bachelor party last year. Cyclone! Inferno! Stonecutter! Sound off! You guys okay?"

"Ja. I'm alive, Herr Cleary," said Inferno from several feet away. His flames were flickering as he fluctuated between human and fire form. "As for 'okay', that's open to debate."

"My sentiments exactly," said Cyclone, now back to her human guise of Giselle Dupre. She looked around her. "Stonecutter! He jumped in front of us before that blast struck! What happened to him?" The trio looked around them, only to see mounds of granite colored rubble strewn in front of them. The implication was all to obvious to them.

"Mein Gott!" whispered Inferno, his eyes wide.

"Jesus H. Christ!" cried Torrent. "'Cutter's been blown apart!"

"That is correct. And you are next," came a voice from out of the dust.

The trio looked on as Vulcan came into view. Repeatedly clenching and unclenching her white gloved fists, the Scout's face was an iron hard mask, yet her eyes blazed from rage and murderous intent. For Torrent, or rather, for Moses Cleary, it was a look of menace he had seen far too many times while growing up in Watts during the worst of the Los Angeles riots of the late 60's.

It was the look of a killer.

"You threatened the life of my princess, and my friend. For that, you are going to die," said Vulcan in a chilling, matter of fact tone. Without breaking stride, she crossed her arms over her chest and she glowed from the power building up within her again. With a sharklike grin curling her lips, Vulcan thrilled at how gloriously wonderful it felt.

"Schnell! Schnell! She's going to fire again!" a panicked Inferno shouted.

"Vulcan Shockwave.. . .STRIKE!" cried the Scout of Order, unleashing another energy sphere at almost point blank range. The trio barely managed to get out of the way in time as the sonic burst blew a crater in the ground where they lay only moments earlier. When the dust cleared, Vulcan scowled from frustration because she didn't see the broken bodies of her enemies. She hated that. More than anything, she wanted them dead.

So intent was Vulcan to find her enemies, she failed to notice the pieces of granite rubble slowly, silently pulling themselves together behind her. In a matter of seconds, the rubble formed into the eight foot tall monstrosity called Stonecutter. The creature, a look of sheer hatred on it's face raised it's huge farms to smash the distracted Scout when some shouted from behind.

"Sailor Vulcan! Behind you!" Sailor Moon screamed.

The Vulcan Scout whirled around to see Stonecutter's arms descending like twin hammers. Calmly, Vulcan dodged what would've been a deathblow as the massive fists cracked open the ground, causing the skeleton of the skyscraper to shake and shudder.

"Let's get him!" cried Mars. "Mars Celestial Fire....SURROUND!"

At the Scout's command, her powerful fire rings hurtled towards the lumbering behemoth and, in an instant, it's arms were pinned by the rings, causing the brute to cry out in pain from the searing heat.

"Not so fast, firebug!" shouted Torrent atop a girder four stories up on the skeleton, dousing the rings imprisoning his teammate with a concentrated stream of water. "Cyclone! Wipe 'em out!"

"With pleasure, mon ami!" snarled Cyclone, speeding towards them from out of the sun with the speed of a rocket.

"Shine Aqua....ILLUSION!" shouted Mercury, using her powers to erect a ten foot high wall of solid ice. The wind creature, coming in too fast to stop or veer off crashed into the wall which exploded, sending chunks of ice flying.

"Cyclone! She--is--down!" snarled Stonecutter, lumbering towards the wind creature who was down and unmoving.

"Yes. And you are about to join her," said Vulcan, astonishing everyone by swinging a steel girder at the rock monster like a baseball bat. The clanging sound when the steel made contact with Stonecutter's body was deafening. Vulcan winced from the pain of impact, but the monster was sent crashing against the support beams of the skyscraper's skeleton, causing it to buckle.

"This gets crazier by the minute!" said an awed Sailor Venus. "Just how powerful is that girl?"

"Enough of this verdamnt nonsense! Kill them all!" yelled a furious Inferno, shooting fireballs at the Sailors.

"Not today, you pyromaniac!" said Mask. Standing in front of the Scouts, the caped hero produced his cane, extended it, then twirled it in his right hand with all the velocity of an airplane propeller, deflecting the fireballs before they could do any harm to his beloved and her friends. Inferno, on instinct, ducked as the fiery projectiles were hurled back at him.

"Here's something that'll warm you up, sucker!" shouted Venus. "Venus Love Chain....ENCIRCLE!"

The Love Sailor's blindingly bright energy chain snaked out at Inferno and he screamed when it hit him squarely on the chest and he went down.

Torrent, watching the scene was enraged. His forces were not only being beaten back, they were being overwhelmed.

"How does it feel?" asked a voice from behind him.

Torrent spun around and found himself staring at Vulcan who casually approached him, the slow click-clack of her spiked heels on the steel beam unnerved him. Close up, the water creature found there was something unusually....familiar about the girl, as if he had met her before.

"What?" he asked, his eyes narrowed to slits.

"How does it feel to know that your plot to murder the Princess has failed?" Vulcan asked.

Despite the nervousness he felt, Torrent laughed. "My plot? I'm afraid you've got that wrong, babycakes. I'm just the hired muscle. Someone else is pulling the strings."

Vulcan arched an eyebrow, her curiosity piqued. "Indeed. Most interesting. You will tell me who that person is. Now."

Torrent snorted. "Go screw yourself."

The Vulcan Scout did something that sent a chill down Torrent's spine. She laughed. It was a harsh, cruel sound. "I am sorry, but I cannot do that. Besides being anatomically impossible to perform such an act, I would never give vermin like you the satisfaction."

Her face then hardened into a demonic mask. "Since you refuse to divulge your leader's identity, I have no choice but to take a more proactive approach. I will cripple you, break every bone in your body, then forcefully extract the information I seek from your pathetic excuse for a mind. Once I have accomplished that task, then I will kill you."

Torrent shuddered slightly. The icy coldness in Vulcan's voice, and the murderous gleam he saw in her eyes made it clear to him that she was serious about her threat. When Torrent saw Vulcan clenching and unclenching her fists, he decided to act. With a snarl, he unleashed a powerful stream of water at the Scout who, anticipating the attack leaped in the air to avoid the blast.

Touching down in front of Torrent, Vulcan unfurled a devastating wheelhouse kick that would've killed a normal human on contact, but her leg merely sliced through Torrent's torso without hurting him. The momentum of the kick caused Vulcan to lose her balance and she toppled off the beam. However, she managed to grab the beam where she hung on for dear life.

Torrent laughed heartily as he glared down at Vulcan. "Surprise! I can control the density of my body at will, meaning no one can touch me if I don't want them to. And now, for my next trick. It's a sure fire killer."

Before Vulcan could vault back onto the girder, Torrent clutched her head in his hands and the Scout screamed from white hot pain flooding every square inch of her body.

"What... .are. . . .you.. . .doing. . . .to. . ..me?" she demanded through tightly clenched teeth.

"Drying you out, sweet cheeks. Literally," growled Torrent, flashing a vicious smile. "I'm using my power to drain every last bit of moisture from your body. By the time I'm done with you, there won't be so much as a husk left!"

The searing, unending pain made even thinking difficult for Vulcan, never mind mounting any sort of defense as she could feel her flesh hardening and her blood literally boiling in her veins. At best, Vulcan figured she only had a minute left to live before her organs were reduced to dust. Seeing no other option open to her, the Scout let go of the girder, releasing her from Torrent's grip.

"Dammit!" the water creature growled.

Badly weakened from extreme dehydration, Vulcan knew she would not be able to save herself from the fall. Barely conscious, Vulcan thought she heard screams from below but wasn't sure, what with the wind rushing past her. With the ground quickly coming up to greet her, Vulcan closed her eyes and calmly waited for the violent impact that would end her life.

How ironic. My first action as a Sailor Scout in a millennia, and it would appear to be my last as well, thought Vulcan. Not exactly what I had in mind when I returned to duty. Would that constitute....a joke?

Suddenly, the Scout felt her fall abruptly stop as hands clutched at her body. Vulcan opened her eyes and found herself staring at Mask who had her in his arms. With a phenomenal grace, the caped hero gently landed on the ground with his precious cargo.

"I must say, this is a pleasant surprise," said Vulcan. "Thank you."

Mask smiled. "You're welcome. Tuxedo Mask is the name, rescuing distressed damsels is my game. Are you okay?"

"I will be. What about the others?"

"They're fine, but those creatures are hanging tough. Can you fight?"

Vulcan, feeling her strength, and her anger return stood up and nodded. She felt shaky and wasn't completely recovered from Torrent's attack, but she would persevere. "I can. Let us assist our teammates."

As it turned out, Mask was wrong about the Scouts being fine. In fact, they were dying, suffocating at the hands of Cyclone.

"I truly regret having to kill, but I have no choice," the wind creature said ruefully, concentrating on the Sailors who were inside a large crystal clear bubble of her creation. "By using my power to draw away the oxygen, you will die in an airless void. Then we can continue our mission without interference."

"Amen to that, fraulein. But where is the girl we're supposed to kill?" Inferno wondered aloud.

"A--good--question--Inferno," Stonecutter rumbled, twisting his massive body from side to side to scan the landscape since he didn't have a neck. "I--do--not--see--her--either."

"Stop it!" yelled Mask, slamming into Cyclone's back. With her concentration broken, the Scouts were released from the vacuum that was killing them. Inferno shot a flame blast at Mask who ducked and threw a trio of roses at the fire creature. The stems buried themselves in his chest and Inferno roared from pain and he crumpled to the ground. But Mask, angry at seeing Moon threatened wasn't finished as the caped hero snap kicked Cyclone in the head, and he was rewarded with a cry of pain.

"Cyclone! Inferno! No!" shouted Stonecutter, lumbering in to attack, but the stone giant was intercepted by Vulcan who launched herself at him like a missile, catching him flush in the face from a perfectly executed flying kick and the monster went down. Vulcan didn't let up as she hefted the creature and hurled him against the skeleton, which reverberated from the impact.

"Bitch! You're dead meat!" roared Torrent, hurtling at the Vulcan Sailor. The heroine merely stood her ground in front of a pallet stacked up to her chin with large bags. When the water creature was only feet away, Vulcan leaped a good thirty feet into the air with an almost ridiculous ease as the creature crashed into the pallet with a voluminous explosion of dust. When the dust settled, Torrent was sprawled on the ground, covered from head to toe in a grayish powder that started to congeal on his body in thick clumps.

Vulcan elegantly twisted her body in mid-air and gracefully landed near Mask and the recovering Sailors.

"Whoa! Talk about a mess! What did he hit?" Venus asked.

"Quick drying cement," replied Vulcan, helping Venus to her feet. "The most logical weapon to use against a creature composed of water."

"Slick," said a grinning Jupiter. "Vulcan, I'm beginning to like you."

Vulcan gave her teammate a slight nod. "I am pleased."

"Well, I am not!" yelled Inferno, throwing fireballs at the heroes.

"You're not the only person who can heat things up!" Mars snarled. "Inferno, I'm gonna roast your ass! Mars Fire... .IGNITE!"

As Mars unleashed her fire blast, Inferno held out his arms and the blast was stopped short as if it met an invisible barrier. Then, before the shocked eyes of the heroes, the blast was instantly redirected and, in the blink of an eye, Mars was enveloped by her own flames. Her screams as the flames consumed her were horrible to hear.

"RAYE! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Moon shrieked.

"Mask! Your cloak! Quickly!" ordered Vulcan. "Venus! Jupiter! Deal with the creatures!"

While Mask whipped off his cape and covered Mars in it, putting out the flames, Venus and Jupiter, horrified to have seen their teammate, their friend being burned alive were slow to respond. Vulcan, seeing this became furious.

"Don't just stand there! MOVE! Keep the creatures away from us or we'll all end up dead!" she yelled.

The Sailors, snapped back to reality by the sharp tone of Vulcan's voice went into action.

"Venus Crescent Beam... .SMASH!"

"Jupiter Thunder... .CRASH!"

Venus' crescent beam blasted Inferno while a powerful bolt of lightning from Jupiter's fingertips hit Torrent who screamed from agony while stray discharges of electricity stunned Cyclone and Stonecutter. The Scouts then pressed forward with their attack.

"Oh, God! Oh, God!" cried a panicked Mercury, tears streaming down her face while examining Mars with her minicomputer. The sickening smell of her friend's roasted flesh and her hideous appearance nauseated her, Mask and Moon who was beside herself with grief. "Raye's suffered third degree bums over eighty percent of her body! NO! Life signs are fluctuating! She's going into shock! She's dying!"

"No. She won't," said Vulcan. Once again composed, she placed her fingers on both sides of Raye's head and concentrated. "Your mind to my mind, Raye. You feel no pain. You feel no pain! You----feel----no----pain!"

After several painfully long moments, Mars, her eyes bulging, gasped loudly, then, with a sigh, she lapsed into unconsciousness.

"What did you do to her?" Mask demanded.

"I am using my telepathic powers to block the pain and shock from her burns," Vulcan explained, her face tightly drawn from intense concentration. She then turned to Moon. "But I cannot maintain this state for long. Mars' injuries are too severe. Sailor Moon, use your scepter to heal her."

Moon was stunned. "My scepter? How'd you find out about that?"

"Luna told me. Hurry! Mars will die if you do not act!"

Nodding, Moon stood and held her right hand high over her head. With a sudden flash of light, the Cosmic Moon Scepter appeared in her hand. Taking a deep breath, Moon concentrated on her power.

"Moon Healing....ACTIVATION!"

All at once, silvery light shot out from the scepter, bathing Mars in it's luminence. Before the eyes of Mercury, Mask and Vulcan, Mars' horribly charred skin returned to normal, her hair instantly grew back and her uniform was repaired. In an instant, Mars was brought back from death's door.

"Fascinating. Utterly fascinating," whispered Vulcan, in a state of awe. After releasing her mind meld on Mars, she turned to Mercury who was monitoring her friend. "Mercury. How are Raye's life signs?"

"Strong and steady, Sailor Vulcan. She's going to make it," Mercury replied happily. "Your timely help made all the difference. Thank you."

Vulcan nodded. "It was my pleasure."

"Say, guys? Would someone catch me? I'm kinda wasted," said Moon, who, with her eyes rolling back in her head, collapsed, but Mask caught her. "Whew! That sure takes a lot out of a girl."

"Hey, gang! Is Mars okay?" asked Venus, running up to the group, Jupiter hot on her heels.

"Yes. But she and Sailor Moon are temporarily incapacitated," Vulcan replied. "What of our adversaries?"

"Still breathing, unfortunately," Jupiter growled. "We left 'em stunned down by the foot of the skyscraper. What's the call, guys?"

"With two of our number out of action, I recommend we withdraw. All of you, leave. I shall cover your retreat," the Vulcan scout replied.

"What are you going to do?" Mask asked.

Vulcan's face turned stony. "To use a popular saying, I am going to bring down the house. I will alert you once my task has been completed."

"Sailor Vulcan....Talia, please, be careful," Moon said tiredly, her eyes filled with concern. She reached for Vulcan's hand and held it tight. "If you get yourself killed, I'll never speak to you again."

"Do not worry, Sailor Moon. I will endeavor to stay alive. Now go."

With Mask carrying Moon and Jupiter carrying Mars, the Scouts and the familiars left the construction site, leaving Vulcan alone. Standing up, she smoothed her skirt and calmly walked towards the creatures.

At the base of the skyscraper, Torrent was shaking off the last of the cement that was clinging to his body as his partners were pulling themselves together after the flurry of action against Venus and Jupiter. The creatures were not at all prepared for powerful the Scouts were, and that error resulted in pain for all of them. Yet they were alive and determined to fight back.

"Gott in Himmel! Not again!" cried Inferno, watching Vulcan cross her arms over her chest as she approached them. "Look out! It's that lunatic fraulein in purple! She's attacking!"

"Vulcan Shockwave. . . .STRIKE!" yelled the Scout, unleashing an energy blast that screamed towards and then well over the heads the creatures, exploding behind them with the loudness of a thunderclap.

Torrent chuckled at Vulcan. "Looks like you missed, sweetheart."

Vulcan shook her head and pointed at something behind the Torrent and his companions. "No, I did not. Look behind you."

The creatures did and were horrified to see the skeleton of the skyscraper, its lower portion a hopelessly twisted ruin leaning forward. A second later, the entire structure collapsed on top of the monsters before they had time to think or move. Vulcan leaped away as the skeleton crashed to the ground in a monstrous, ear piercing cacophony of grinding steel that could be heard for miles around. When the dust settled, all that remained was a huge mound of wrecked girders that covered the entire construction site and rose some two hundred feet high.

From a vantage point on the roof of a building across the street from the site, Vulcan intently studied the wreckage, waiting to see if any of the creatures would crawl out from under the debris. After fifteen long minutes, Vulcan, impatient at not having seen anything took a step towards the edge in preparation to leap off the roof and down to the site. But she stopped short when she heard the sounds of sirens in the distance.

"Damn," she growled.

Vulcan had planned on searching the wreckage, logic demanding she learn whether or not the creatures survived the collapse of the skeleton. And if they lived....she would destroy them.

But with the police only minutes away, Vulcan knew she would not have time to conduct her search. Since the authorities would not understand how necessary it was for her to annihilate the monsters who sought her death and the deaths of her friends, Vulcan, frustrated, had no choice but to leave. With a deep frown, Vulcan activated her communicator. "Sailor Scouts. This is Sailor Vulcan. What is your status?"

The stress-lined face of Mercury appeared on the tiny screen. "Talia? Thank God! Serena's been worried sick about you. Are you all right?"

"I am well. The creatures have been waylaid. How is Sailor Mars?"

"Better. We've taken Raye home to recuperate. I'll activate my homing signal so you can find us. Be sure to change back to your civilian guise before you arrive. Raye's grandfather and her boyfriend don't know she's Sailor Mars."

Vulcan saw Mercury's face disappear from the screen and a flashing arrow replace it. "Understood. I have your signal. I will arrive at your location in ten minutes. Vulcan out."

The Scout took one last look at the wreckage and seethed, knowing she would not be able to satisfy her growing need to kill. Unlike Talia who sought to repress the violent side of her emotions, Sailor Vulcan found she had no such reservations and yearned to act upon her dark desires. The Scout of Order silently hoped the creatures survived so she would get a second chance to battle them. A second chance to crush them.

That thought brought a chilling, malevolent smile to Vulcan's lips as she left the scene.

An hour later when Eric Riley returned to the skyscraper in midtown Tokyo that composed Infostar's Tokyo offices, R & D department and manufacturing division; he went straight to the sub-basement complex that served as his private inner sanctum.

It was a large, sterile environment that contained spartan furnishings. The living room area had a black leather sofa and two matching chairs, a desk with an Infostar computer system and printer on it, a projection screen television and a phone on a stand next to the sofa. The only decoration in the space was a six-foot wide canvas on the far wall of a huge, beautiful, gleaming white castle set against a star splashed nighttime background with Earth hanging above the expansive structure. Closing the door behind him, Riley instantly knew he wasn't alone. Turning on the lights, Riley saw his four henchmen seated before him.

"Welcome, my friends. Since you're here, can we assume your mission was successful?" he asked, a smile creasing his face.

Moses Cleary shook his head. "Nope. We didn't get the job done. Your princess is still alive."

Riley's eyes widened, then narrowed to slits as his face flushed crimson. With a strangled cry of rage, he bludgeoned his cohorts with a powerful mental blast, sending the foursome to their knees, screaming from agony.

"Fools! Idiots! Incompetents! How dare you come back here and tell me you failed? I will destroy you for that!" Riley roared.

"Go right ahead....boss," said Cleary through clenched teeth, gritting out the terrible pain in his head. "If... .you waste us....you'll haveta....do the dirty work....yourself."

Hearing that, Riley blinked and the torment ended for his cohorts who lay sprawled on the carpeted floor. He took several deep breaths to calm himself down. "You're quite right, Mr. Cleary. My apologies for losing my temper. So, what went wrong?"

"Plenty. That bimbo you sent us to kill had friends. Five chippies in----ironically enough for me----sailor suits who kicked ass and took names," Cleary replied, rising to his feet.

"Really? It would appear you locked horns with the infamous Sailor Scouts. I didn't think the princess had that kind of clout."

"The who?" asked a puzzled Yakov Ben Nasser.

"A group of super powered heroines who call Tokyo home," Riley explained. "Up until now, I thought they were just an urban legend."

"Well, they are no legend, Mein Herr. They are quite real, and quite powerful. Especially the sixth Scout," said Helmut Schmidt.

Riley frowned. "What do you mean, sixth Scout? There are supposed to be only five. What did she look like?"

"Tall, short black hair, pointed ears and a demeanor that was cold and heartless," Giselle Dupre replied.

Riley's frown deepened. Then he chuckled. "The Vulcan. Well, well, well. So, the off-worlder regained her powers. Most intriguing. Tell me, what was the princess wearing at the time you encountered her?"

"Some sort of uniform I think. I wasn't paying attention," Cleary grumbled.

"I was," said Giselle. "She wore a white, short sleeved top with a red bow on her bodice and a knee length, blue pleated skirt. Does that help in any way?"

"It does indeed, Ms. Dupre," said Riley, grinning like a shark. "That will be all for today, people. I seem to have lost my mental link to the princess. There are spare bedrooms and a kitchenette down the hall if you want to rest or eat. But don't leave this area. I prefer no one see you. We can plot a new strategy to get our hands on the little bitch in the morning."

"And where are you going?" Cleary asked.

"If you must know, Mr. Cleary, I have a date. But tomorrow, you'll all be going to school."

"At present, authorities are unsure as to what caused the skeleton of the proposed high rise apartment building to collapse an hour ago," said the stem faced man who spoke into a microphone. Behind him was the rubble of the downed skyscraper. "However, workers at the site report seeing the Sailor Scouts in the area battling a foursome of monsters. The investigation into this disaster is continuing...."

"Terrific. Something else for the cops to blame us for," grumbled Raye. The girls, the familiars, Darien and Talia were in Raye's bedroom watching the late afternoon news and the account of the incident at the construction site. Sitting up in bed, Raye made a noise of disgust and turned off her TV with the remote. She then glared at Talia, seated on the floor. "Nice going, pointy ears. Talk about a royal screw up. This one's a winner."

"Wow! You weren't kidding when you said you were gonna bring the house down," an awed Mina said to Talia. "But, wasn't that overdoing things just a little bit?"

"Given the situation, Mina, it was the most logical course of action to take at the time," Talia replied. "The lower portion of the skeleton had been severely damaged as a result of our battle with the creatures. Once the builders had seen the damage, they would have had no choice but to raze the structure. I merely saved them the trouble."

"What about those freaks we fought? Are they history?" Lita asked.

Talia shook her head. "As in dead, you mean? Highly unlikely. The power those creatures possessed was staggering. At best, I did no better than incapacitate them. I suspect we have not seen the last of those elementals."

"Ele-what?" asked a puzzled Serena, sitting at Raye's bedside.

"Yes, a fitting name for our opponents. Those monsters have powers that mimic the four elements of nature: earth, wind, fire and water," said Amy with a nod. "Heaven only knows what the limits of their abilities are. If they survived the collapse of a skyscraper, it's altogether possible they may have no limits."

"And they're after Serena. Why?" Darien wondered aloud.

"Torrent called Meatball Head 'Princess'," Raye offered. "I don't think he meant it as a term of endearment. That means the attack on her has something to do with our past on the Moon."

"I agree. Also, I believe the elementals are mere pawns. Someone else is behind the attack on Serena. Torrent admitted as much to me," Talia added.

"But who?" a frustrated Luna asked.

"Yeah! That's what I'd like to know!" said Serena, feeling more than a little frightened. "I mean, who'd want to kill a cute, sweet, innocent girl like me?"

Raye rolled her eyes. "Maybe you just answered your own question," she growled. "In the meantime, there's still the not so little problem of Miss Stone Face here."

The Shinto Priestess paused to fix Talia a harsh, steely-eyed glare. "Just because you're a Scout and you fought with us against those monsters doesn't cut any mustard with me. We've been tricked by a she-wolf in a sailor suit before. Besides, you tried to kill us."

Talia's eyes narrowed ever so slightly from annoyance. "If you are referring to the confrontation in the park, may I remind you that I was provoked into violence as a direct result of your actions? I was merely defending myself."

"Yeah, right! By trying to break Lita's neck!"

"Raye! Please!" said Serena.

Raye ignored Serena while continuing to glare at Talia. "Serena swears on a stack of bibles that you were with us on the Moon. Suddenly, so does Luna. But the rest of us can't remember you for beans. I wanna know what's going on! And I wanna know now!"

"I also wish to get to the bottom of this mystery," added Amy.

"That makes two of us," said Darien. "It could explain why someone's after Serena."

There was an uncomfortable silence in the room before Luna spoke up. "Princess, I recommend the Luna mind meld," she said to Talia. "Now that I know the truth, I can reveal it to the others by this method rather than by word of mouth."

Talia nodded. "I concur. I will assist you in this operation."

Raye was incredulous. "You mean to tell me you actually trust her, Luna?"

"With my life, Raye. All of you, Artemis as well, gather in front of me."

The girls, Darien, Artemis and a scowling, reluctant Raye positioned themselves on the floor in front of Luna who sat in Talia's lap. Talia placed her fingers on the sides of Luna's head, the idea being to use her telepathic powers to boost Luna's own mental abilities for the mind meld. The black cat, feeling the power in her mind, took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"Here we go," she said. All at once, seven pencil thin beams of light shot out from the crescent moon symbol on Luna's forehead, touching the foreheads of the others. Raye, Amy, Lita, Mina, Darien and Artemis winced and grunted at feeling the bottom brutally drop out of their stomachs while Serena, having experienced this sensation before only gasped. Suddenly, they were all transported back to a time long, long ago....

Next: Prism of the Past

GO TO CHAPTER FIVE