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Sailor Moon: Changing Face
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PART 1 of 3
Written by
Ed Hrzic
Copyright (c) 1997 by
Ed Hrzic
Sailor Moon is a trademark of Toei Animation.
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Greetings all of you Sailor Moon fans out there! After finally
getting a chance to see Sailor Moon around July '96 (previously
only seeing pictures), from what I gathered, I decided to use my
world-renowned talents to write a Sailor Moon fanfic. Since all
other SM fanfics revolved around using the North American or
Japanese names, I'll screw you all up and use the names that they
had in SPAIN! Hahahahahahahahahahaha!
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Any comments? Toss 'em to "bd981@@yfn.ysu.edu". Muchas gracias!
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NOTE: This fanfic contains slight profanity and a moderate amount
of violence.
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A WORD ABOUT THE NAMES...
Since you know that I'm going to use the Spanish names for the
characters, you should also know a little about the translation
I'm about to do. In the Spanish version of Sailor Moon, the
Sailors don't refer to themselves as "Sailor ". When
speaking, they say "Guerrero/a " and "guerrero" (or
"guerrera") can be translated to mean "warrior", "fighter" or
"soldier". Considering the fact that the whole title is called
'Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon', that really didn't come as much of
a shock. Besides, saying "Warrior Mercury" sounds a little bit
more action packed. Yet, when referring to a "Sailor Scout",
they use the term "Guerrera Sailor" (Sailor Warrior). Nifty,
huh? But, to avoid any people getting totally confused, I'll use
"Sailor " and "Sailor Scouts", vale?
Oh, and here are the character names (using the American names as
a key):
Serena --> Bunny
Lita --> Patricia
Mina --> Carola
Amy --> Amy
Raye --> Ray ... but I'll use Raye. (Calling her "Ray" just
wouldn't sound right to english/american ears... Remember that
the pronunciation of words are different in Spanish...)
Darien --> Armando
Chibiusa --> Chibiusa
Luna --> Luna
Artemis --> Artemis
Chad --> Jury
Molly --> Caty
Melvin --> Camilo
Tuxedo Mask, in the Spanish version, is called "Senor del
antifaz", literally translated to mean "Sir/Lord of the mask".
So I'll just call him "Sir Mask".
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FYI: This fic takes place bit after Armando broke his
relationship with Bunny, to find out more about Chibiusa
(slightly after the episode in which Bunny collapsed in a
telephone booth, crying). So what if it isn't totally within the
storyline? Tuff.
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PART 1 -- "Crossing Paths"
<< ONE >>
Night had set all over Tokyo.
Bunny was sleeping fitfully in here sleep, after her recent
encounter with Armando. Luna had been watching over her for some
time afterward, until Bunny had fallen asleep.
Luna was slightly depressed with the fact that Armando had did
that do her. And so suddenly? There was more that he wasn't
letting on. And from what Luna could figure out, why was he
spending so much time with Chibiusa?
Speaking of which, the young girl was sleeping soundly in
Bunny's parents' room. After Bunny had come home so sullen, they
though it would be the best for her to sleep it off...alone.
After some time of contemplating what to do next, Luna curled
up and the bottom of Bunny's bed, and went to sleep.
* * *
Lightning crashed, and Bunny woke. It was a particularly large
crash of lightning, and seemed very close.
Bunny simply looked out of the window. The light reflected off
the glass.
Luna had woke the same time she did. She was generally
concerned for the Sailor, and wondered what an effect the recent
events would have on her. So far, they didn't seem too
horrible...but would she be able to continue with her duties to
the world at large.
"Bunny," she said, in her meek voice.
She still stared out the window.
At this time, it would be far too useless to talk to her. She
would be wrapped up in her fantasies and memories.
Luna gave a brief sigh. Perhaps it would have an effect on
her. And perhaps she would once again, at a later date, resume
her life with Armando.
But what if they didn't renew their relationship?
As if in answer, a bolt of lighting shot straight down from the
skies. Bunny yelped in fear, and Luna closed her eyes.
After a short time, Bunny went back to sleep.
"Goodnight, Bunny."
No answer.
Luna persuaded herself to push the nagging voice out of her
head, that kept reminding her that there was no rain to accompany
the storm.
* * *
Another flash of lightning, and a shard of blue energy opened
in the alley. From the portal, a green-haired man appeared,
assisting another, wounded one.
They both collapsed in the alley. Through the portal came
another man, obviously in a hurry, since he was running.
The green-haired man yelled as soon as the new one appeared,
"Close the portal! Quick!"
The man turned, and commenced shooting the portal with some
kind of snake-like beam, forcing the door-way to close. And for
a brief moment, a shadow appeared, but vanished as the door
portal closed.
He collapsed on the wall across from the others. All of them
were obviously wounded and fatigued, as scratches, tears in their
clothes, and blood were all identifiable.
"Gen," the one who closed the portal asked, "where are we?"
"I have no idea, Swen. But it's better than where we just
were," the green-haired one replied. "We have to get some
medical attention for Ken as soon as possible," he looked down at
the man he assisted.
Ken stirred, and shook his head. "I'll be fine."
"You're going to be DEAD if we don't do something," Gen shot
back. "We're all brothers. We all have to watch out for each
other."
Swen nodded, still catching his breath. He hoped it would be a
long while before they found this dimension and bridged the gap.
By that time, the he and his two brothers would have time to
regroup, and find some way of stopping them...
* * *
The blonde woman cursed as the portal closed in front of her.
"Cursed brothers!" She swung her fist in aggravation.
"Do you know where they went?" a voice from behind her asked.
"No," the angered woman replied, running her hands through her
short hair. "But it won't take long to figure out. It is simply
a matter of running a trace on their energy signatures."
"Then, how long?" the other, green-haired woman, asked.
"Who can tell? I estimate two weeks."
"You have five days," the woman said, and turned to leave. She
placed her tiara back on her forehead, and spat at the ground.
* * *
Artemis had been running from roof-top to roof-top, to see
where the energy had come from. He arrived too late, as nothing
was left in the alley. He sensed that SOMETHING had come
through, and that it was still somewhere around.
He couldn't tell whether it was evil, or good, or none of the
above. The feeling was simply too weak.
However, he did know something. Whatever it was, it couldn't
possibly be good for Tokyo.
* * *
Raye woke from her sleep, and proceeded to meditate on what she
had been feeling from the entire night. Day seemed to break
early this day, and she had to find out what had been giving her
chills and a foreboding sense of calamity.
Meditation gave her nothing; she tried everything that she knew
of -- no spirits plaguing her, and none bothering either her
grandfather or Jury. Nothing.
But there was something...something that was-
She felt a tap on her shoulder that made her yell with fright.
She fell backward, and turned around to see Carola waving at her,
with Artemis in hand.
"Don't DO that!" Raye whined.
"I'm sorry," Carola said. "I thought you were just thinking.
If I would have know you were so deep in though..."
Raye shook her head. "No...it's not that. I just have a funny
feeling that something terrible's going to happen."
Carola glanced down at Artemis, who returned her glance.
"Something...?" they said at once.
Carola let Artemis down. "Raye, Artemis has been telling me
the same thing. He was out last night on a hunch, and suddenly
started feeling something..."
"Maybe it's nothing," Artemis concluded.
"And what if it isn't?" Raye said. "We can only wait until we
either see or hear more. It's the only way. Speaking of which,
why are you here?"
"Oh...I was going to take a walk, since I like it the morning
after it rains. But it didn't rain last night, so I decided to
take a walk since it was such a bright day."
* * *
Amy was typing on her computer when she received a call on her
communicator. "What is it?" she asked, immediately after it
beeped.
"Amy, it's Carola. I'm here with Raye, and we wanted to ask
you something."
"Go ahead."
"We were wondering, have you had any strange feelings lately?
About something bad?"
Amy though a moment. "No...nothing comes to mind. Why?"
"Raye and Artemis were getting some bad vibes last night. We
were seeing if did, too."
"No, not that I remember. Maybe you should asked Patricia or
Bunny. Maybe Luna knows something."
<< TWO >>
Swen and Gen carried Ken into the deserted warehouse.
"This should do it," Gen said. "I don't think anyone's used
this for several years."
"Have you found out where we are yet?"
"According to my calculations, it appears very Earth-like, and
appears to be Earth in some way."
Swen laid Ken on the ground. "Could it be an alternate Earth?"
"I don't know. But if it is, perhaps we can find some help."
"Help? Who'd help us? We are the last uncorrupted people,
Gen. Our own parents and friends cast us out."
"We can't fight an entire WORLD by ourselves, Swen. We need
SOME assistance."
"Perhaps we should just quit," Swen sighed.
Gen stood up in utter rage. "How can you say that?! We've
been fighting for so long! Should all of that mean nothing?"
Swen looked up at his brother. "As you said, Gen, we have an
entire world against us, not the five corrupted warriors after
us."
Gen shook his head. "We can't...we can't give up...cursed...
cursed-"
"Swen! Don't let it affect your judgement! When it takes
control of you, there is no way back from it."
Gen sat back down, leaning against a crate. "Does that mean
you aren't giving up?"
Swen looked down at Ken, who was sleeping. "I seriously don't
know. Look around. Really, is there anything worth fighting
for?"
"Is there any reason to STOP fighting?" Gen asked.
"Quite right, brother. Quite right."
Ken rose from his slumber, and sat up.
"Are you alright?" Swen asked.
Ken nodded. "I told you I'd be alright. You just needed to
give me some time."
"And a healing agent," Gen added, a ball of energy dancing on
his hand.
* * *
From the looks of things, the Malign Sisters had taken the day
off on their search for the Tokyo Crystals. Patricia was glad to
be able to jog around for a while, as she hadn't had the chance
to, with school and being a world-renowned heroine, Sailor
Jupiter.
She was to make her normal route around the park, past the ice-
cream parlor, by the arcade, and through the alley between the
old warehouses. She wasn't afraid of being attacked, or mugged,
or even bothered. After all, she was a big girl, and knew a
great deal of martial arts -- well-enough to take care of any
adversaries. If she needed more help, she could call on Jupiter
to help her. Either way, it was a win-win situation.
She shook her head. Why was she so aggressive? Most people
were turned off by it. And she had yet to meet a man who was
turned ON by it.
She slipped down the alley, where she heard to opening of a
door. Up ahead, a man with green hair stepped out of the door of
the warehouse, and turned to walk in the same direction she was
going.
'Huh? I thought these warehouses were abandoned. Shoddy
construction...'
Just as she was to pass the door, a silver-haired man stepped
out, slamming into her. Both of them fell to the ground.
"Hey!" she yelled. "Watch it, will you?"
The man looked at her, and stood back up.
"You know-" Then she stopped. She'd yelled at one of the most
handsome men she'd ever seen. She blushed in embarrassment.
"Let me help you up, Miss," Swen said.
"Uh...I..."
He grabbed her hand, and pulled her up with remarkable
strength, and she saw his eyes shone with silver.
"Be more wary of your surroundings," he said, and closed the
door behind him. He then began walking in the opposite direction
she had come.
'Who was he?' she asked herself. 'With eyes like that, I HAVE
to find out!'
He had already disappeared behind around the corner. She ran
after him, and turned the corner.
He wasn't there.
"Where...did he go?" She looked around, and across the street,
but the mysterious silver-eyed man was no where to be found.
"Drat! I handsome guy, and I let him get away!" She felt like
crying. She simply sighed, and continued with her pre-arranged
route.
From atop the building opposite the warehouse, Swen watched the
young woman continue jogging. Suddenly, he felt a piercing
sensation as he followed her with his eyes. He grasped at his
chest, and in his mind saw a ball of lightning fly toward him and
knock him to the ground.
The sensation disappeared as she vanished out of sight. He
caught his breath and tried to gather his composure. He had
begun to sweat heavily from the quick vision.
"She...no. She couldn't have been..."
* * *
Carola and Raye had been sitting on the steps to the temple for
quite some time.
In a fit of agony, Carola cried: "I'm so bored! Let's do
something!"
Raye and Artemis had the same, thoughtful expressions on their
faces.
Raye looked up. "Huh? Sorry...what did you say? I didn't
hear you..."
Carola stood up. "Let's do something. It's boring sitting
here."
Raye shook her head. "Nah... I just don't feel like it."
Artemis nodded in agreement.
Carola sighed, her hopes of salvation torpedoed by a
spiritualist and a cat. 'How depressing,' she thought to
herself.
They heard footsteps running up the stairs.
It was Amy. She got to the top and started catching her breath
when she got to them.
Raye was puzzled. "Amy, what's wrong? You look like you've
been running for quite some time."
"And saw a ghost to boot," Artemis added.
"Been...running all the...way from...home..."
"Why didn't you take a bus?" Carola asked.
"Too...important..."
"What is it?" Raye inquired.
Amy stood there a while, finally catching her breath. "The
storm last night...wasn't a normal storm. Not even an electrical
one."
"What?" the others exclaimed.
"The lightning was full of anti-static charges..."
"Anti-who?" Carola tried to follow.
"The charges that certain things use to cross through
dimensions. Anti-static charges open a dimension into another
and-"
Raye and Artemis were looking at each other with huge smiles on
their faces. "We were right!" they both gasped.
There were more footsteps behind them. Up the stairs came
Patricia. "Hi everyone! What's everybody doing here at the
temple?"
"Trying to figure out what happened last night," Raye stated.
"What happened last night?" Patricia asked. "Besides that
rainless storm."
"Exactly," Amy exclaimed. "That was it. It looks like someone
has crossed dimensions, right into ours."
"Huh?" was the only reaction that Patricia let Amy have.
"Never mind...I don't want to know." Then an idea hit her.
"Guess what, Raye!"
"I dunno. What?"
"I saw the cutest guy today! I bumped into him and he had
these gorgeous silver eyes...! Oh!" Patricia was practically
drooling over herself.
"Where did you meet him?"
"Oh, by the abandoned warehouses."
Raye though for a moment. "Nobody uses those warehouses. I
don't think they've been used, or even OPENED, for years."
Patricia took the towel from around her neck and started to
wipe herself off as she sat down on the steps. "Search me. But
there was someone else that walked out of the door before he
did."
"Hmmm..." Artemis said, aloud.
"What are you 'hmmming' about, Artemis?" Carola asked.
Artemis looked up, then around, realizing that he had thought
aloud. He laughed stupidly. "Just...just thinking."
"'bout what?" Patricia bumped him.
"Uh...ham or turkey."
Raye fell down. "Ham or turkey? What kind of solution is
that?!"
"The solution to the overriding question of LUNCH."
<< THREE >>
Luna had been walking around town for quite some time. Night
was had fell a few minutes prior. She had become too depressed
to stay in Bunny's room, and decided to get some fresh air. Even
better, she hadn't even been remotely assaulted by any alley
cats.
Luna sighed, her heart hanging heavy for Sailor Moon.
"Bunny...Bunny...Bunny...Huh?"
She looked up into the sky, and noticed that a large ball of
light was descending upon the park.
With a crushing sound, the light hit the park, and the world
rumbled.
"What the...?" Luna raced to see what happened.
The large ball of light was actually some sort of metal pod.
People were gathering around the crater that it left.
Thankfully, no one was under it.
After a rather long amount of time, the pod began to open.
People began to scatter, knowing that whatever it is, they wanted
to get out of its way.
From inside, a large, mechanical creature lumbered out of the
shell. It was largely built, and stood well over twelve-feet
tall when it was fully standing.
What Luna didn't understand, and was quite shocked to find out,
that there was a golden moon on the creature's forehead.
"What?! What the-"
The creature shook its hand at one of the buildings nearest it,
and in a wave of gravity, the structure collapsed.
Luna's eyes went wide. Where were the scouts when she needed
them?
Then, something leapt over her head, and landed in front of
him. The man grew bright and exclaimed "GREEN...CANNON BEAM!",
accompanied by a brilliant flare of energy, fired at the
mechanical destroyer, deliberately missing.
The thing turned, eyeing him with some sort of anticipation.
The man folded his arms. "I am a warrior who fights to avenge
the wronged, and to defend the innocent: Warrior Green!" Green
had a green outfit and wore a darker green ninja-mask around his
face.
From the top of another building, Luna could see that another
man, similarly dressed, but in blue, added to the saying: "The
future of the world is ours to command: Warrior Blue!"
And from the ground, off to Luna's right, she could see a final
person, dressed in Silver. "In the name of peace-"
"We shall defeat you!" all three of them said at once.
The creature looked around, and seemed to be deciding on its
next course of action.
The creature, nor the three strangers, were on Luna's mind.
What she couldn't understand is why there was a moon emblem on
the monster's forehead. The moon kingdom didn't have such
weapons. The thing simply appeared out of nowhere, like it
teleported in from somewhere.
The three strangers, who were called Green, Blue and Silver,
had engaged the monster in combat.
Blue threw his hands forward, yelling "BLUE...SHREDDING
CRESCENT!", firing a crescent missile of blue color.
The destroyer was knocked backward from the force of the
attack, and it struggled to regain its balance.
"SILVER...RAIN-STORM!" Silver called out, firing a multitude
of sliver-like beams of energy. With surprising dexterity, the
destroyer cartwheel out of the way, letting the beams damage the
building directly behind it. Silver muttered a curse at his
inaccuracy, and began to follow up.
Blue leapt down to Green's position. Blue nodded to Green.
"DUAL ATTACK! GREEN CRESCENT CANNON!" they shouted. A green
flame of energy was expelled from Green's hands, and wrapped
around it were several blue crescents.
The impact drove the attack through the destroyer's lower
torso. It stumbled backward, stepping on cars as it did.
Silver stood in front of it, arcing his hands up to the sky.
"COLOR OF HEAVEN...BLAST!" Before he could stop it, the
destroyer appeared to 'pop', similar to a bubble, fading from
existence.
"What?!" he exclaimed as the torrent of energy felled the
building where the destroyer was. Luna failed to see the rock of
concrete flying toward her, hitting her on the head, and knocking
her out.
Blue and Green converged on his position.
"What happened?" Green asked Silver.
"I don't know. I simply...disappeared. It must have left. I
don't understand it. But if I think what is goin-"
"Here we are!" they heard a shout from behind them.
From atop an undestroyed building stood a woman with blonde
hair, pulled into two pony-tails. Around her stood four other
women, all dressed in sailor suits.
"I am a warrior that fights for love and justice! Sailor
Moon!"
"Sailor Mercury!"
"Sailor Mars!"
"Sailor Jupiter!"
"Sailor Venus!"
"In the name of the moon-" Sailor Moon began.
"We shall defeat you!" all finished.
Green, Blue and Silver stood on the street, staring at them.
"Sail...Sail...Sailor-" Blue began.
"MOON!" Silver screamed, as if he wanted to destroy her with
his voice alone.
Moon didn't understand. "What's his problem?"
Silver gestured to his comrades. "It doesn't matter now...
they've found us! Kill her! Kill Sailor Moon!"
"Huh?!" Moon exclaimed. "Me?!"
Blue and Green began to leap for them.
"Stop them!" Mars shouted.
Jupiter hopped forward a step. "PLANET JUPITER..." the air in
her hands crackled, "...ATTACK!" She tossed her ball-lightning
toward the on-comers.
They dodged and retaliated with their own attacks.
"GREEN...CANNON BEAM!"
"BLUE...SHREDDING CRESCENT!"
All of the Scouts leapt off the top of the building, and down
to the ground. Silver, Green and Blue stood together yet again.
"Who are you?" Moon asked.
Mercury activated her scanner. "Heavens! Their power is
increasing exponentially! Somebody! Do something!"
Mars stepped forward. "FIRE...DESTRUCTOR!" Flame rings burst
forth from her hands, spiraling toward the three warriors.
Silver ran forward. "SILVER...DIAMOND BOMB!" The area
exploded with light and wind, sending the rings flying aside.
Blue and Green rushed forward under the cover of the attack.
Blue careened into Mercury, elbowing her in the stomach, and
then aimed at Jupiter. "BLUE...GATE-CRASHER!" Jupiter was
thrown over fifty feet backward, rolling until she stopped.
Green leapt into the air. Venus saw him, and launched herself
into her attack: "VENUS...LOVE AND BEAUTY...ATTACK!" Her golden
chain flew through the air, and wrapped around him. "Got him!
Mars!"
She nodded. "GREATER...FLARE!" Another burst of flame rushed
from Mars' fingers, circling Green in a globe of flame.
Green howled in pain.
Venus was about to chant happily, when she heard their opponent
begin talking. "I...am a warrior....who fights to avenge the...
wronged...and to...defend the...innocent...and shall not be
defeated!" With a rush of energy, Green snapped through his
bonds, and negated Mars' fire attack.
Silver stood in front of Sailor Moon, with a burning hatred for
the woman. "Sailor Moon...you don't know how long I've waited
for our confrontation."
"What? Confrontation? What did I do?"
"Taking our parents from us...shattering dreams...that's what
you've done. YOU'RE GOING TO PAY!"
Moon jumped back in fright. Who was this? And why did he have
such a burning ambition to kill her?
Silver rushed forward, but was stopped as a rose imbedded
itself at his feet. He looked up to see a man in a tuxedo
standing in one of the park trees.
"Who are you?!" Silver demanded to know.
"I am another warrior who fights for the justice, and for the
dreams in the hearts of the innocent. I am Sir Mask."
"Sir Mask, my conflict does not concern you at all. Begone."
Mask leapt down from the tree, between Silver and Moon.
"Damaging this city is enough in involve me in the conflict."
"I do not wish to harm you, Sir Mask. You doubt the extent of
my powers...and those of my brothers."
Footsteps.
Mask and Moon turned to see Green and Blue standing to the side
of them.
The body of Mercury dropped to the ground.
The body of Mars dropped to the ground.
The body of Jupiter dropped to the ground.
Moon screamed. "Mercury! Mars! Venus!"
>> END OF PART 1 <<
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Sailor Moon: Changing Face
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PART 2 of 3
Written by
Ed Hrzic
Copyright (c) 1997 by
Ed Hrzic
Sailor Moon is a trademark of Toei Animation.
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Previous parts available at "ftp.cs.ubc.ca" in the directory
"archive/pub/anime-fan-works/..."
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Got comments for me? Send them all to "bd981@@yfn.ysu.edu".
Thanks!
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NOTE: This fanfic contains slight profanity and a moderate amount
of violence.
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AUTHOR'S NOTE: See part 1 for the key to the names of the
characters. The names are of the Spanish version of Sailor Moon.
PART 2 -- "Degree of Uncertainty"
Silver looked at the bodies of the unconscious Scouts, then
back to his current enemies. "I would have them killed, but they
aren't the real targets."
Mask and Moon stood in disbelief. The three strangers had
defeated the Scouts by themselves, even being outnumbered.
Something was very wrong. Very wrong. Mask felt it in his
bones. The strangers were bent on killing Moon, and the other
Scouts seemed to be nothing but paper to them. If they were
intent on destroying Moon, then they could do it. Mask could
hold off three individuals easily. But with their power? Mask
felt some sort of...connection?
Why had these individuals come? They seemed enraged with Moon
directly. What had she done? Was there some sort of mistake?
No, they had specifically said 'Sailor Moon.' There was no
mistaking the name. But...
"I'll give you one last warning, Mask. I am a noble person. I
do not enjoy killing."
"Then why have you attack the Scouts? They did nothing to
you!" Moon screamed, coming to tears.
Green was angered beyond belief. "Did nothing? DID NOTHING?!
They are the reason we are here! They are the reason that we can
no longer see our families! You are the reasons that we cannot
even think about going back to our old lives!"
Mask couldn't understand what he was hearing. Families?
Lives? There had to be some mistake. Unless they were from the
Negaverse...
Moon threw her tiara at Silver. It hit something, hovered in
front of him, and spun to a stop. It dropped to the ground in
front of him. "Weakness is unlike you, Sailor Moon."
Silver gestured to his brothers. "Blue! Green!"
As he called them, they leapt in either side of him, then moved
forward two steps.
"Sir Mask, I gave you your warnings. Since you do not wish to
oblige, I will not regret your demise."
"RED...BLUE...GREEN...FINAL ATTACK: TRIANGULAR PROTON FLASH!"
The light gathered between them, in a triangle shape. Blue and
Green moved to one knee, and from all the hands of the three
brothers, a triangular beam raged forth.
As it was about to swallow Moon, Sir Mask leapt into the way to
absorb the blast.
"GET OUT OF HERE!" he screamed, and was thrown against a wall.
Moon looked at where he lay, and began to run away.
Someone grabbed her hands, and hoisted her up in the air.
Silver stared at her. "Look into the eyes of your demise,
Sailor Moon. After so many ye-"
Moon struggled in the grip, and broke down crying. "I DON'T
KNOW WHAT YOU WANT! I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHO YOU ARE!"
Silver was slightly taken aback by her vocal response. He
dropped her on the ground. As if something had hit him, he
looked down at her...and realized-
"You're not...Sailor Moon...your hair is...blonde-"
"PLANET JUPITER...ATTACK!"
Silver was too late to react, as a ball of lightning struck him
the chest, knocking him backward.
A very fatigued, and wounded, Jupiter stood between Silver and
Moon. "My life will END before you kill her!"
Silver stood up, slightly disoriented from the attack. Blue
and Green were about to follow up, but Silver stopped them.
Blue couldn't understand. "But...why?"
"LOOK at them, Blue. Look at all of them."
The blue-costumed brother began looking at Jupiter, then Moon,
then the rest of the Scouts.
"What...are they doing?" Moon asked Jupiter.
"I have no idea," she replied. "But be ready to get out of
here when I tell you to."
Blue stepped back, in grave horror. "They...they..."
Green realized as well. "Then...they're..."
Silver stepped forward toward Jupiter. She tensed up, as if
waiting for an attack.
"Tell me," he asked. "Where are we?"
"You're...in Tokyo."
Silver nodded. "I guess I should have figured that out
already. I guess the question we should ask is WHEN are we?"
"When...?" Moon repeated, standing.
"I think there was been a grave mistake."
"Mistake?! You attacked an entire city!"
Blue shook his head. "No...we battled with one of the
princess' mechanical destroyers."
"What makes you think we're going to believe you?!" Jupiter
shouted.
"Maybe I could answer the question..." Moon and Jupiter heard
from behind them. Luna had finally awakened from her wound.
"Luna!" Moon cried, and went to pick her up.
"Something attacked the park," she began, "And then these three
began fighting it. I don't know what happened next..." she
trailed off.
"Rest, Luna," Moon said, and Luna fell asleep.
"Like we said, there's been some sort of mistake," Green
repeated his brother's statement.
"Let's get them to the warehouse. There's going to be a LOT of
explaining to do."
<< FOUR >>
Blue finished laying the Scouts down on tarps on the floor of
the warehouse. Green lay Sir Mask down on the other side of the
room.
"Just who are you?" Jupiter asked.
Green and Blue pulled at their masks, which turned into a long
length of cloth. When they did, the cloth disappeared into the
air.
Silver did so as well.
Patricia stood up. "You! It's you!"
Silver tilted his head. "Do I-" Then he chuckled, nodding.
"Yes, I remember. I bumped into you this morning."
"You still haven't answered our question," Moon continued.
"Who are you?"
Silver sat down, as did his brothers. "My name is Swen. Then
green haired individual is my brother Gen, and the other
gentleman is Ken. We are all brothers.
"As I must state again, we have made a terrible mistake.
Before I continue, I must ask again, when are we?"
"Nineteen-ninety six," Patricia volunteered.
Silver seemed slightly distraught at the date.
"What's wrong?" Bunny asked.
"We've not only through dimensions...but time as well."
"I don't understand..." Patricia breathed. "Dimensions...
maybe Amy would know."
Bunny walked over to Amy's prone body and began to lightly hit
her cheek. "Amy...Amy...wake up."
After a few moments, Amy opened her eyes, and winced in pain.
"What...what happened? I don't remember much about..."
She saw the three brothers and-
"We couldn't stop them," she concluded, by looking at the
bodies of the other Scouts.
Bunny put a hand to Amy's shoulder. "They're trying to explain
something, but we need your help."
Amy sat up, and Bunny helped her over to where Jupiter and the
brothers were.
"We've...I'm not very good at explaining these types of
things," Silver said. "Gen has an easier time."
Gen directed himself at the Scouts. "Have you ever sometimes
wondered about certain things you did? What would have happened
if you didn't have breakfast one morning, or if you dyed your
hair a different color?"
"I suppose..." Bunny said.
"Well, it DOES happen." Gen picked up a small piece of rolled-
up sheet-metal from the floor, and began drawing on the dirt.
First, he drew a straight line.
"Let's say the one day, you have to decide whether to take one
road or the other to your house. If you go this way," he drew a
slanted line from the tip of the first line, "then you get home
more quickly. But with the other," he drew another line,
completing a 'fork' from the original line, "you have a more
pleasant time, looking at the park."
"I follow you so far," Amy said.
Patricia and Bunny simply nodded, uncomprehending it.
"And then you decide, should I take care of that itch in my
foot, or wait till I get home?" Gen drew another fork on top of
one of the branches of the first fork. "And then another
decision..." he drew another fork. "What I'm getting at is that
there are infinite possible things that can happen in a day,
since there are so many decisions."
"Then, all of these paths are different dimensions?" Amy
concluded.
"Yes."
"But what do these dimensions have to do with us?" Patricia
asked.
Gen lay back against a crate. "We are from the future. The
year twenty-thirty."
"What?!" Patricia, Amy and Bunny exclaimed.
"We are from a time...a dark time...that is a twisted result of
this time-line."
"Dark? Do you mean as it night?" Bunny asked.
"Very close," Green stated. "Do you know why we wanted to
kill you?"
"Why?" she asked.
"Because, you...no...Sailor Moon was the cause of the downfall
of order and prosperity in our time.
The three conscious Scouts stood. "What?!"
"I don't believe this!" Patricia said.
"Like it or not, it's true," Silver said. "But...there is a
difference."
"As in?" Amy asked.
"The color of your hair...of all the Scouts."
"Why should that matter?"
"Where we are from, Sailor Moon's hair is green. I suppose you
are Mercury?"
Amy nodded.
"Yours is blonde. And for the rest of the scouts: Mars...
blonde, Jupiter...black, Venus...red."
"That still doesn't explain Sailor Moon, and this downfall of
society..." Amy trailed off.
"We really don't know what happened to her. I told you of the
different hair colors because it illustrates what we mean by
being from a different time and dimension. Ken is our
'historian.' He can tell you."
Ken cleared his voice. "We don't know exactly when it started.
Before the turn of the century, Sailor Moon's exploits were know
as being beneficial to the world, and she was declared a an
international heroine. However, after the year two-thousand, she
changed."
"Define 'changed'," Bunny asked.
"I was just about to. Moon started to not fight FOR the
people...but AGAINST the people. It seems that she had a total
change of heart about her duty and her powers. She was corrupted
by power, and from what we can gather, hate. As she was, the
Silver Crystal, the source of her powers, blackened, and was
corrupted along with her. After that, it was only a matter of
time before the Scouts follower, one after another."
Bunny, Patricia and Amy listened quietly, wondering about their
futures.
"She then took the throne as the Queen Selene of Earth. Many
tried to stop her, but they were either destroyed, or corrupted
by her influence as well."
"We began to notice things were becoming different all around
us. People no longer sought the small things that made their
lives whole and good. They were replaced by greed: all wanting
power and money. As each day went by, more and more people were
being governed by Selene's will."
"Eventually, we became some of the last to be uncorrupted by
the megalomaniac. It was then we were given an option by a
stranger: join the petty life of the rest of the world...or
fight to regain what the world once was, before the queen took
over. We wanted to fight. That is when he gave us these powers.
And that is who we have been fighting ever since: the queen, and
what she calls her 'Infernal Scouts.'"
Bunny sank to her knees. "I can't...believe it...It's all
going to end like this..." Amy knelt down to comfort her friend.
"That's how it happened."
"IT'S A LIE!" Bunny screamed. "I couldn't have done all of
those things! IT'S A LIE!"
Silver shook his head. "We're living proof. We didn't say it
IS going to turn out this way, but that is how it happened in OUR
reality."
They heard a groan from behind them. Mask had awoke, or,
rather, Armando had awoke. "I take it we didn't win, then."
"There's a rather long story to it all," Swen said as he stood
up. "Green will explain it all. I'm going to get some air."
Swen stopped and stared long at Armando. There was a feeling
of...closeness...almost a pervading sense of...a mentor? He
shook his head.
Gen gestured to Armando. "Got a few minutes?"
Armando looked at him, fully confused by it all.
* * *
Swen sat upon the roof of the warehouse, and gazed over the
town and its bay. "So, this is what it all used to look like."
Then his vision became dark, the city encased in blackened
crystals, and people walking around aimlessly.
There was a child who cried on the streets.
No one looked.
A woman had her purse stolen.
No one did anything.
A young man was being beaten severely.
No one helped.
Swen snapped out of his trance, and the world returned to
normal, as he heard steps behind him.
Patricia tilted her head to the side, and tried to give a
smile. But in light of the past events, she could barely muster
up enough to grin.
Swen turned back to the sunset.
'Quick, Patricia! Do something!' She then shook her head.
'Do something? He comes from the future, where the Scouts are
his enemies! Why would he want to talk to me...Jupiter.'
"Did you come here to bother me? Or to find out more about my
dead world?" broke the silence.
'That was a rather terrible thing to say.' Patricia broke her
grin. "I just wanted to see what you were doing."
"Breathing," Swen said coldly.
Patricia saddened. "Just thought you might-"
"Don't think!"
"Look! I came here because I thought we could talk! But it
looks like you're nothing but a conceited...BASTARD!" She
wondered about her use of language, but it seemed appropriate
enough.
Swen stood. "Conceited? I live my life to the brink of death
each and every day. I have to wonder if I'll even live to
tomorrow, or whether or not my brothers and I will have something
to eat for dinner. But you...you're life is easy enough. You
have your family, your friends, and can find things to eat when
you're hungry. You're not hated by an ENTIRE world."
She stomped toward him. "I HAVE no family; they're DEAD. The
only friends I have in this world are the Scouts. No one else
wants to be friends with a violent girl. And I have to WORK to
feed myself and to live."
Swen turned back to the bay. "And your lives will be different
from today."
"And what does THAT mean?!"
"The Mechanical Destroyer, from the queen. It's returned to
its place of origin. It's only a matter of time."
"A matter of time? Time for- you don't mean-"
"They are going to be here any day now. When the Destroyer is
analyzed, then she'll send them after us."
"More Destroyers?"
"And probably the Infernal Scouts as well." Swen shook his
head. "It all seems pretty pointless."
"Pointless? You can fighting for justice pointless?"
"No. I call fighting against an entire PLANET pointless. A
world that doesn't want our help anyway. They'd rather be
content with their own lives then bettering them in any way. And
they don't realize that the queen is at fault."
Swen began to brake down. "Being a leader...I'm so tired. I'm
so very tired of it all..."
Patricia heard a quite sobbing from him. She sat down next to
him and put her arms around his shoulders, and leaned him against
her.
"I never had a chance to grow up..." he whimpered.
<< FIVE >>
Infernal Mercury pulled a black-box from the fallen Destroyer.
The creature returned to its point of departure, and collapsed
when it did.
She hoisted above her head, and began walking through the
landing bay, to a computer at one end. She deposited the box
upon a small table next to the computer, and immediately several
cables descended from the ceiling, hooking themselves directly
into the box.
Upon the large monitor, the Destroyer's last moments of
operation were replayed.
With an evil smile, Mercury laughed. "Bingo."
With a few keystrokes, she had pinpointed the exact dimension
that the brothers had landed in.
"Alert the queen," she said into the air. "And begin primary
assault-deployment procedures."
"Understood," a hollow, computerized voice answered. "What is
to be the primary wave of assault?"
"Destroyer, class B."
"Understood. Additional assault data?"
"Yes," she said, typing. "Secondary wave of assault, Infernal
Genocide Scout Assistant Armor, class A."
"Understood. Additional assault data?"
"No," she looked around. "Primary attack data number-"
Mercury thought quickly. How many Destroyers would it take to
destroy the brothers? And from the dimension that they were in,
many different people inhabited. The number of Destroyers would
also need to dominate the populace as well. "Ten."
"Secondary attack data number, four," she said.
"Five," she heard from behind her.
Mercury turned, seeing the queen standing in the doorway to the
bay. She bowed, whispering, "Your majesty." She then stood up.
"Your majesty, you don't intend on-"
"You've found them, correct?"
"Yes. All of the Destroyers returned this afternoon. The last
one had severe damage to its internal and external circuitry.
From the recorder, I was able to determine that it was the
brothers who had destroyed it."
The queen laughed as she stepped closer to the computer.
"Isn't simply ironic? You've created them from the ground up,
manufactured them, and you call them Destroyers."
The queen turned to Mercury, placing a hand around her neck,
and thrust her up against a wall. "And they returned DESTROYED.
What do you have to say for yourself, Mercury?"
Mercury struggled under the Queen Selene's powerful grip.
"I'm...I'm sorry your majesty. It won't happen again."
"See that it doesn't. I'll be most displeased if it does."
Selene ran a finger down Mercury's cheek, then dropped her.
Mercury clutched at her throat from lack of air. "We are
sending a large strike force to the dimension, of ten
Destroyers."
Selene looked down upon her. "And what happens if it doesn't
work?"
"That is why we have the Genocide Armor."
"Then you are attacking them directly?"
"If the primary wave does not accomplish its task."
"NO. AS the primary wave. The Destroyers are incapable of
handling the brothers. This one proves it."
"But, your majes-"
Mercury was cut off as she was flung against the wall by the
force of Selene's mind. "You are NEVER to question my judgement.
You would be DEAD now if it wasn't for me."
"Yes...mistress...I am...sorry for...not heeding your...your
words..."
"Good." Selene dropped Mercury to the ground once again.
"Prepare the fifth suit of armor. I will be assisting the
operation PERSONALLY. The brothers have long been a nuisance.
Either they come quietly, or they die. Two choices. Not
pleasant for them, either way." Selene turned to leave. "And be
ready as soon as possible. I wish to engage them the day after
tomorrow. Nightfall."
Mercury bowed. "Yes, your majesty."
Selene left, allowing Mercury time to adjust their enhancement
suits, the Infernal Genocide Scout Assistant Armor. Each
conforming to the specifications and abilities of each of the
five Scouts.
It was only a matter of time...
* * *
The morning sun shone brilliantly across the cloudless sky.
Even the grime on the windows of the warehouse fell to the
piercing light.
This woke Swen, Gen and Ken from their restless sleep. If the
truth be known, none of them slept. They merely rested. Sleep
was impossible, since Queen Selene and the Infernal Scouts would
be closing in on them any time soon.
They could only bide their time.
Swen rose from his make-shift bed, and paced around the room.
Gen sat up against a crate. "How long do you think it will
take them to come?"
"If I'm correct, that Destroyer was sent here for one purpose.
As you know, the Queen wishes to grasp hold of other dimensions
as well. That Destroyer was no exploratory creation. It was
meant to lure us out of hiding, then report back to the main
installation."
"That means they know where we are..." Ken sighed.
"I wager that they knew a long time ago. Since they haven't
come for us just yet, I would assume that they are amassing a
strike force. They will probably come, themselves.
"There is one thing that we have to count on: that they don't
know about the Scouts of this time period. Maybe they've
overlooked it. We call them in when the troops arrive, then
strike as hard and fiercely as we can."
"Swen," Ken intruded, "what if we, and the Scouts, are unable
to defeat them."
Swen breathed deeply and exhaled deeply. "We will most likely
die, the Scouts as well, and the queen will have yet another
world conquered."
"Then we have to do whatever we can."
Gen held his stomach. "Swen, we haven't eaten for three days.
I'm beginning to feel very uneasy."
"I'm hungry, too, Gen. But we can't worry about that yet."
"Swen," Ken added, "we can't fight an entire army on no food.
We have to eat, or we won't have enough strength to carry on."
"Perhaps you're right. Maybe I can ask the Scouts for some
help."
Ken laughed when his brother said it.
"What?" Swen and Gen asked simultaneously.
"Just listen. Doesn't it seem strikingly odd? Asking for help
from people who we have dedicated our lives to fighting."
Swen nodded.
* * *
Patricia had been sitting under her usually tree, eating her
rather abundant lunch with Amy when Cary and Camilo walked up.
"What's up, both of you?" Cary asked.
"Oh..." Amy began, "just thinking about our futures."
"Future?" Camilo asked. "Isn't it a little early to be
thinking about that, of all things?"
Patricia shook her head. "Not when you already know it."
"Huh?"
"Nothing. Just thinking aloud."
Camilo fell backward, babbling incoherently.
Cary, along with Patricia and Amy, noticed. "Camilo, what is
it?"
"Th-There's som-someone up in the tree!"
Patricia and Amy looked up. From one of the branches, a figure
completes a flip, and lands in front of Amy and Patricia.
Gen then bows. "Greetings, ladies. Sorry to disturb you. We
need some help."
"Who is he?!" Cary and Camilo said, together.
"Gen!" Amy exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
"We came to ask you...if you have any food you'd spare. We
haven't eaten for the last three days."
"My heavens!" Patricia said. "No wonder all of you look so
worn." She began packing up what remained of her lunch into her
bag and handed it to him. "Here, takes this."
Gen took it, and seemed very grateful. "Thank you, this will
help us indeed."
Amy handed him hers. "This, too. You'll need it."
"Thank you-"
Cary held hers in front of her. "We heard that you haven't
eaten in three days? Take mine, too."
"I don't know what to s-"
Cary elbowed Camilo in the ribs. "Uh- Yes, take this."
Gen had four bags. "I-I don't know what to say. We don't even
know you."
Cary smiled. "Well, I can miss a day of lunch for a person who
hasn't eaten in a while."
"Thank you once again."
Gen turned to begin walking.
Cary turned to Patricia and Amy. "By the way, where's Bunny?"
Amy and Patricia became rather grim figures. Patricia spoke:
"She hasn't been feeling well lately. Armando...ended the
relationship."
"Oh, that's terrible!"
Gen stopped and turned back to Patricia. "What did you say?"
"I was just telling them that Armando had ended his
relationship with Bunny."
Gen stepped backward, as if the words had hit him like a
boulder. He then began running off campus.
"Gen!" Amy called.
But he was already out of earshot.
"Now, what do you suppose got into him?" Cary asked.
"Hmmm..." Amy thought.
* * *
Gen dropped the bags upon one of the tarps at the warehouse.
Ken picked up one of them. "Where did you get them?"
"I went to school after school to see where the Scouts went to.
Eventually I found two of them, who were eating lunch. They gave
me theirs. Then, two friends of theirs gave their lunches to me.
I could barely balance them all on my way back. But..."
"But what?" Swen asked as he came from the roof.
"I...I don't know how to explain it."
"Try."
"Just as I was leaving, Patricia had said that Armando had
ended his relationship with Bunny. Which means-"
Swen held his hand up. "Then that solves everything. What
we've been trying to found out, we finally have."
"Perhaps if we can-"
Ken interrupted them, with a full mouth. "He's DEAD, remember?
SHE killed him."
Gen nodded.
"There has to be a way, though. The future is at stake."
* * *
Patricia had taken a shower, and lay in her bed, just drifting
asleep.
Swen was so concerned with his brothers' safety, and the safety
of his world, that he had forgotten the fundamental
characteristic of being himself. Through the years of fighting,
his personality had dwindled, until he was barely more that an
icon.
But, she had brought some of his life back into the light.
With just a slight touch, he cried, and became what he was
before.
Human.
If only his brothers knew how much he cared for them.
She heard a sound outside on her patio. She got out of her bed
and edged her way toward the window. She could take care of
herself. But how did they get to this floor? And on her patio,
no less?
She saw a familiar form standing, looking out over the town.
Brushing the curtains aside, she stepped out into the cold air.
"Swen, what are you doing here?" she asked.
Swen sighed. "I'm just here to say 'thank-you' for what you
and the Scouts have done for us. Mainly, my actions have been
the cause for a lot of our distress."
"Swen, I was just thinking of you."
"Seriously?"
"Yes. I was thinking that you have been trying so hard to
better the world, and take care of your brothers, that you have
lost something."
"And what's that?"
"Your humanity."
Swen looked down. "You can't live a life being human when
everyone else are becoming things from your nightmares."
"And when you forget who you are, you become the things that
you're fighting, Swen. Never forget that you're human, and a
good person, who is trying with all his might."
She held his back.
Swen turned and put his arms around her. "Hold me. Just for a
few moments."
Patricia held the eldest of the three brothers in her arms, yet
felt she was holding a child of half his age. Someone who needed
to be comforted, and reminded that he was still a person that
people cared for.
He then looked into her eyes.
'Now what?' she thought to herself.
Swen bent down and touched her lips with his own.
'I'm being kissed! I'm finally being kissed!'
After a few moments, he hugged her again. "I'm afraid there
isn't much time left. The Infernal Scouts will be coming for us
soon."
"Don't go just yet. Just stay here for a few minutes longer.
Just a few minutes."
And they stayed embraced, in the cold Tokyo air.
>> END OF PART 2 <<
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AUTHOR'S NOTE: Well, this is the last chapter that will be
posted of 'Changing Face.' The only way that you can get the
final chapter from me, is to e-mail me with your comments about
this fic, and request the final chapter.
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