Sailor Moon
Alternate Reality
*****************
Part 3: "Senshi Rivalry"
Written by Strike Fiss,
Ninja Crowbotics, 1996
Prologue
Sailor Pluto sat in her apartment's living room, nursing a lukewarm cup of
sake. Her steady gaze out the window had lasted for a good hour.
She looked into the cup of clear, water like liquid and sighed. "Was I so
wrong?" she asked the cup.
The fact that it never answered didn't stop her from continuing. "I mean,
Sailor Moon, the Sailor Scouts...are they really strong enough? I mean, they
beat the Lords..."
The sake hung in the cup silently.
She smiled to herself. "You know, Haruka would kill me if I admitted the
Inner Scouts were good. She has this big idea that..." She paused when she
realized she was talking to herself.
She stood up, suddenly angry. "I don't believe the Lords were that easy to
beat." she threw the cup against the wall, making it shatter. "They CAN'T have
been THAT easy to destroy..."
She looked around at her dark apartment. It almost reminded her of back on
Pluto. That's when she remembered WHY the Lords were so unbeatable, and why the
Outer Scouts were so passionate about the cause to destroy them.
Suddenly, though, a five-millennia-old battle was cut to a sudden end by
some weird guy in a white lab-coat. Pluto sat back down. Maybe it was over.
Maybe...just maybe...the Lords didn't have a back-door. Maybe, the Omega Web
gave the Scouts the advantage they needed to finally get rid of the Lords.
Maybe...just maybe...the Lords were gone.
Maybe.
Chapter 1
"Chris?" Ami pleaded. "Uh, Chris? Could you slow down a bit...?"
Chris glanced over to the passenger seat. "Well, Ami. I wouldn't want to
disrupt traffic, would I?"
He had offered to take Ami to her cram-school today, after she had missed
the bus. Yes, Chris was now driving. He had applied for and received an
international-drivers-licence, and had borrowed Darien's car for the day.
"Yes," Ami coughed "but there's no other traffic."
Chris smiled. He had decided to test out Darien's sporty-little coupe, and
was driving on a back-road at one-hundred miles-an-hour. "True..." he said
simply, taking a moment to adjust his sunglasses.
Ami began getting worried as the school came into view. It blocked the
back-road from continuing. "Uh, we're here...you can slow down, now..."
"Now what fun would THAT be?" Chris said happily.
"More fun than exploding as we hit that brick wall..." Ami replied quickly.
The engine gunned and Chris shifted into the highest gear. "One of the
neat things about the drivers course I took is that they teach you the same
high-speed driving course as the police learn."
Ami nodded quickly. "Wonderful. Now, please slow down..." she said,
watching the end of the road creep up at an uncomfortable pace.
Chris smiled. "Don't worry. I was a pro-driver back on Saturn."
Ami blinked. "Wait...you told me yesterday that you didn't have cars!"
"Did I? Mmm, I guess I forgot about that..."
"BRAKE!" Ami pleaded.
Chris sighed. "Maybe you're right."
He slammed the gearshift into neutral, then turned a hard right. The car
began sliding
sideways, then went into a three-sixty, throwing Ami against the door a few
times.
In the few brief moments when the car was facing the way it was moving, Ami
saw the wall getting closer and closer.
Chris began humming the theme-song from DragonBall Z as he straightened the
wheel, put it in first gear, and floored it. The car was facing backwards, and
began screeching against the road. Slowly, it came to a stop. Chris let off
the gas and parked it.
Ami was thrown against the seat, and her knuckles were white from holding
on. "I-I-I meant you should have applied the brakes!"
Chris shook his head. "We were going too fast." he pointed to the wall,
which was now one foot away from the back bumper. "Would've crashed into the
wall."
Ami's eyes widened. "Don't EVER do that AGAIN!" she grabbed his collar and
started shaking him.
Chris unlocked the doors. Ami got out. Chris smiled innocently. "Do you
want me to pick you up after school?"
Ami frowned at him, then slammed the door shut, storming off to class.
Chris sighed. "I guess she doesn't love me any more..."
He put the car in gear.
"Thank god." he sighed.
He was so relived, that he didn't even notice the car tailing him.
Rei sat alone in her room, plucking away at her little musical keyboard.
Because of the Lords, the schools had been shut down while the city recovered
from the destruction. No school. Rei should have been happy. She could have
helped out at the temple more, or at least had more free time to spend with
Chris.
Unfortunately, with the school closed, he, Maury and Andrea were going back
to Calgary. Not for another week...but their visit had still been cut short.
She sighed to herself. Maybe that horrible dream she had was just a dream.
Chris would be gone in a week, and would be far away from City Hall or anywhere
else in Tokyo. The dream had not occurred for weeks now, and she was confident
the danger was averted.
Chris knocked on the door and let himself in a second later. "Hi Rei.
Whattcha doing?"
Rei looked up from her keyboard and shrugged. "Just wallowing in my own
selfishness."
Chris lay down next to her. She was obviously mad at the fact he had to
go. "You know, Rei...you could always come visit me...it's not just a one-way
arrangement."
Rei held her chin in her hand. "Now, THAT wouldn't look suspicious." she
sighed. "A girl doesn't fly thousands of miles to a different continent, just
so she can say 'hi' to a boy who she just knows."
Chris nodded. "You haven't told Grandpa, have you?"
Rei blinked, "Why would I want to? He gets all protective of me the minute
I mention going on a date with someone. I can't just go up to him and say: Hi
Gramps! Guess what! I'm having sex with Chris!"
"Well..." Chris shrugged.
Rei sighed, then sat up. "I guess I should...sooner or later...but what I
want to know is how this little return-trip is going to affect us in the time
being."
Chris looked down at the floor. "I'll always be there for you. I don't
care if I have to wait another thousand years, to see you again." he said
solemnly.
Rei smiled. "That's sweet, Chris...but it's not necessary..."
Chris sighed. "I think it is." he paused. "You probably guessed Ami has
been...interested in me, right?"
Rei nodded. "Yeah...she kicked the shit out of me before. Yelling
something about me 'stealing' you away from her." she shrugged. "Why? What
does that have to do with anything?"
He looked up at her. "To tell you the truth, I didn't really mind. Not
until recently. Not until I saw your face after we defeated the Lords."
Rei shrugged. "Huh?"
Chris sighed. "Well, all this attention...you know...has been great. I
really didn't mind Ami's advances until I realized...I know, it IS pretty
corny..." he got more serious. "But at that moment, when I saw your face light
up when that last asshole vaporized, and we had finally won, I saw you like you
weren't Sailor Mars, or Princess Mars, or whatever." He sat up and faced her.
"Just plain Rei. YOU'RE the one I fell in love with."
Rei looked him in the eyes. "Chris...please..." a tear rolled down her
cheek. "Saying goodbye is going to be hard enough..."
Chris blinked. "I..." he paused. "Rei, I thought you were okay with this.
I mean, I can visit...and I'm trying for a..."
Rei pointed to the door. "Please...I need to be alone right now..." she
said with her back turned to him.
A long pause.
Chris walked to the door. "Do you know what I did today?" he asked,
stopping abruptly.
A quiet sob came from Rei.
"I drove like a homicidal maniac through half of Tokyo, just so Ami would
get off my back and we could have an uninterrupted last week together."
Rei said nothing.
Chris hung his head slightly. "All I ask is that you notice my efforts."
he paused. "I haven't noticed yours."
A quiet swish signified the door closing. Rei turned around with tears in
her eyes. "I notice." she said quietly.
Chapter 2
Maury sighed, quietly sharpening his knife. "Chris. I though you were
taking Rei out to dinner tonight?"
Chris didn't respond. He was buried in a book.
His friend frowned. "Fine. I'll stay out of it."
Chris nodded finally. "Thanks, Mo. I just need some time to think."
Andrea and Maury looked at each other, and decided to drop the subject.
"So," Andrea sighed. "What are we going to do when we get back?"
"Well," Maury started. "I've been thinking of getting my parents to move
to Japan..."
Andrea and Chris both looked at him.
Maury smiled. "Then me and Lita can be together constantly!"
Andrea coughed. "I was thinking we could set up a little organization to
fight crime."
"Yeah, but we were going to do that anyway." Chris said, still reading.
"I'd rather not talk about going back right now, if you don't mind."
The conversation died for the rest of the night.
Grandpa sat on the roof, eyeing the rather beautiful full moon over the
treetops. "Mmm, I love this time of year." he said to himself.
He took a deep breath of spring-time air, and was about to stretch out and
fall asleep, as he often did, when something caught his eye.
"What the...?" he squinted, allowing his eyes to focus better in the dark.
Slowly, the shape of a man appeared below. And he was hiding in a nearby
bush, looking into a window in the temple. Grandpa growled to himself. "Damn
burglars....they have no respect for culture. In MY time, NOBODY ever tried to
steal from a temple!"
Silently, the old man slid down off the roof via a tree. Grandpa ran over
to another bush and hid, plotting out how to attack the 'burglar'.
The intruder stood up suddenly, reviling more of himself. Grandpa gasped
as he saw the man was wearing a makeshift ninja-costume. "We're under attack?"
he asked himself.
Grandpa leaned forward to get a better view. A quick snap signalled he had
stepped on a branch. The intruder quickly turned snapped his head around at the
sound and saw Grandpa hiding in the bushes. He gasped and ran.
The old man leapt out and began chasing him. "Come back here! I'm not
letting you escape!"
The ninja, however, was a lot faster than Grandpa. Despite the old man's
spunk and determination, he lagged behind considerably as the intruder bounded
down the stairs and into a nearby car.
It was already down the street as Grandpa reached the bottom of the stairs,
gasping. "Damn..." he pouted.
By this time, the racket had waken up everyone at the temple. Rei, Chris,
Maury, Chad and Andrea came running down the stairs in their housecoats. "What
happened!?!" Rei asked.
Grandpa sighed. "I don't know. Some weird guy was hanging around outside
in the bushes."
Andrea blinked. "What did he look like?"
"But I DID chase him off! HA!" Grandpa smiled proudly. "Come on. I'll
call the police."
Chris shrugged. "Was it a burglar or something?"
"No," Grandpa said, starting up the stairs. "He was wearing some weird
black pajamas or something."
Chad smiled. "Oh oh. We must be under attack by ninjas."
"Actually," Grandpa paused. "He DID look a little like a ninja or
something..."
Rei, Maury, Chris and Andrea all looked at each other.
Andrea ran back up the stairs. "I'll call the others."
Chris smiled weakly at Rei. "Looks like our little dispute will have to
wait."
She didn't say anything, but walked up the stairs.
Chris took a deep breath. "Right. Got it. Fine."
Chapter 3
Rei sat quietly in the corner as the Scouts shuffled in. She couldn't help
but notice Chris' quiet, unwavering glare at her. His eyes were clearly hurting
at her sudden un-acceptance of his leaving, but Rei held fast. She knew if she
gave in now, she'd only regret it more when he left.
Andrea decided to start the meeting for once. "Okay. First of all, are we
certain we destroyed ALL the Lords and Watchers?"
Darien shrugged. "Well. We pretty much saw the Lords die. We were right
there, and we killed all of them. But we never really did know how many ninjas
there were. And the police worked the 'clean-up' efforts, so we couldn't find
out if any of them survived, but were knocked out during the fight."
Mina nodded. "If any of them survived, they might have been able to
escape."
Ami shrugged. "I hate to mention it now, but I DID do a scan of the area
before they attacked. I could look back on my computer's records."
"It IS a ninja you saw at the temple," Artemis said, "and I saw a lot of
stuff in the Watcher hideout that could have been some weird cloning equipment."
Luna nodded. "We might start by going back to the hideout."
Darien, Maury and Chris all raised their hands. "We volunteer." Chris said
happily.
Darien smiled kinda goofily. "I love these break-n-enter jobs."
Everyone looked at him in surprise.
"Hey...don't think I don't like a little excitement..." Darien explained.
Luna sighed. "Okay. You three go check out the hideout. Chris, bring
your computer in case you can hack into their records. If they DID clone with
the aid of a computer, we might be able to find records on how many we're
dealing with."
Chris, Maury and Darien nodded. "Excellent..." Maury replied.
Luna continued. "Serena, Rei and Lita. Go down to the police station, and
try to get information on how many Watchers they found, and how many of them
died."
"How are we going to do that?" Serena whined.
"I don't know..." Luna growled. "Use the Luna-Pen or something. And not
just the records at the crash site and battle-fields. Also when they attacked
Chris and Rei at the park, and how many they found at the computer building."
Lita nodded. "We'll get the info." she slammed her fists together.
"Ami, Mina and Andrea. We'll try and figure out the situation with Ami's
computer data and Artemis' lazy memory."
Artemis frowned.
"Well?" Luna urged.
Everyone left, or gathered around the cats.
The three dark figures of Tuxedo Mask, Strike Fiss, and Prince Destiny
filled the open door of the Watcher warehouse.
All that guarded the area was a flimsy line of police tape. Chris was kind
of surprised. Darien shrugged. "I don't think they've looked inside yet. Half
the police force in Tokyo was destroyed at the Lord's touch-down-crater."
Maury nodded. "Yeah. The poor guys are probably stretched thin enough
with the NORMAL crime around this city.."
They walked into the black, murky void...careful not to trip over anything
in the dark. "Man, I wouldn't want to get trapped in HERE..." Darien snickered.
"Do you SMELL that?"
Maury nodded. "Wait a second...where's Fiss?"
A loud "CHOOOOM" filled the air! They leapt back as a bright light hit
their eyes, almost blinding them. They both gasped as they saw Chris...
...who was over by a light switch. "What?!?" he asked, noticing their
wide-eyes.
They both fell over. "I DON'T BELIEVE...UUUGH!" Maury growled. "Don't
EVER freak me out like that again!"
His friend smiled.
Darien ignored him and began searching the main 'command area.'
Chris and Maury walked over to the main ninja training/housing area.
"Looks like they were ready to house a couple thousand of the suckers." Maury
commented.
Chris shrugged. "It would make a good skating rink." he paused. "Maybe a
few..."
"Complete with cold, misty fog..." Maury pointed to the darkened 'room'
across the
large warehouse floor. A light fog emanated from it's only door.
Darien caught up to them. "Hey, I saw some computer-terminals or something
in the command centre. Go check it out."
Chris nodded. "You two figure out what's in that room over there. I'll
find out if they kept any records."
Maury and Darien peered into the blackness. "Try and find a light for this
place." Maury said.
Darien found the light switch and flipped it up to 'on.' They both went
wide-eyed as they saw rows and rows of beds. Rather, tables...covered in a
thick slime. "Slime?" Darien snickered. "This just keeps getting better and
better..."
Maury looked down at his feet. "Don't step in that shit. It might be
corrosive or something."
Darien reached into his jacket and pulled out a rose. He tossed it at the
slime, waiting for a reaction. Nothing happened to the rose, and it stayed
alive and normal. "Mmm, that's weird. Usually the aliens we fight spray out
acid or something. Not yellow-ish Jell-O."
Maury shook his head. "Let's just get some in a jar for Ami, okay?"
Darien nodded. "Good idea. She should be able to analyze it, and we can
tell exactly what we're dealing with."
Maury walked over to one of the 'beds,' and took a closer look as Darien
scooped some up into a glass test-tube he found nearby on a table. "Hey, Tux.
What does this say?" Maury asked, pointing to a label on the bed.
Darien looked over. "Oh...it says: Cloning Bed Twenty. Release date,
March fourth."
They both looked at each other, then ran over to the next bed. "This one?"
Maury asked.
"This one is a day later." he looked down the row. "Same with all the
others. One day after another."
Maury took a deep breath. "So, it was a clone per day?"
"No...some of these labels have the same release dates...just from these, I
say they could have made all hundred or so beds produce ten sets of clones in a
month." Darien said, studying the far row. "Oh shit..."
Maury blinked. "What?"
"This date on the last bed is April eighth. One day after we beat the
Lords."
Maury sighed. "Great. So there's a clone running around somewhere...even
if we DID kill all of them."
Darien punched the wall. "Damn! I KNEW we should have checked back at the
hide-out..."
Chris sat in Serebe's old command seat, with his computer hooked into the
socket in the chair's arm. As his computer downloaded the Watcher's files, his
mind drifted back to Rei. She was going through more mood swings then a cat on
catnip.
He tried to remember why she had been so cranky in the first place. Chris
frowned to himself. Why was everything falling apart? First, they had been
basking in the aftermath of the destruction of Zoicite. Rei and him were never
closer, and everyone seemed happy. Then, the Lords came into the picture.
First, a chunk of Tokyo, visible from low orbit, was destroyed. Then, they
almost killed the Scouts. Now, there was a mystery ninja. Not only that, but
because of the destruction, he had to go home early. Now, Rei was pissed off,
and didn't want to be anywhere near him, in case she started feeling bad about
his departure.
"Great." he said out loud.
"Found something?" Darien asked from a few metres away.
Chris took a double take, realizing he said it out loud. He glanced back
to his computer. "Uh...Well, it's all in Japanese, so I'll have to get a
converter from the Internet. At least then, you'll be able to read the text for
me." Chris said. "Also, we got a lot more than cloning records. I downloaded
as much as I could, just in case it comes in handy." Chris frowned.
"Unfortunately, there's not much more than security tapes."
Maury smiled. "We got slime!"
He handed Chris a vile of slime. Chris smiled. "Cool. Looks like Jell-o.
Is it dangerous?"
Darien shrugged slightly, making his cape flap. "Well, don't touch it. We
found it on the cloning beds. Also, this stuff was on the latest cloning bed.
It's green."
Chris blinked.
Maury nodded. "There's at least one ninja left for sure. He was released
from his bed the day after we finished off the Lords. The weird thing was that
the gel on it's bed was a different colour."
"Probably some sort of last resort in case they failed." Darien speculated.
"But only one? Even if it's special in some way, I doubt it's any more powerful
than a Lord."
"Maybe they thought it would catch us off guard." Chris shrugged, shutting
his laptop.
Maury yawned. "Well, if we're all done, I'd like to get some sleep."
Lita walked into the police station as casually as she could. With the
police force cut in half, she should have expected the hustle and bustle...but
it was much worse. "SOMEONE GET DOWN TO OKANAGWA!" someone yelled, just inches
from her ear, scaring the shit out of her.
Lita jumped back to let a police officer through, holding his arm in pain.
"I lost two more at the robbery on thirty-second and main. Get an..."
"I'm having a VERY bad day..." someone else said, also in Japanese.
Rei came in after Lita. "Oh my god..." she had seen this police station a
few times during her life in the neighbourhood...but it never once looked THIS
bad. It was like a war-zone.
Lita looked confused, "Rei, do you really think we should be bothering
them? They're kinda busy..."
"The Lords must have killed off hundreds of police officers. I never
thought it would hurt the city like it has..." Rei whispered, kind of detached.
"The Lords are dead...yet they're still destroying us."
Lita nodded. "I'm going back."
Rei nodded. "The last thing they need is two teenagers badgering them for
the death-toll."
The two began walking out as another twenty "9-1-1" calls came in, and
another shot police officer. He leaned up against the wall and sighed. "Come
on, Sailor Moon...give us a hand already."
Rei turned at the mention of this.
So did most of the people in the room. Everything was quiet for the first
time that day. "They're not police officers." another person said. "They can't
be called on for standard crimes."
The shot officer looked up. "I know, I know." He was silent for a moment.
"It's just that as soon as the Sailor Scouts arrived, this city's been attacked
by everything from killer weeds to aliens."
Rei and Lita knew this was true, and they couldn't help letting a few tears
fall as the overworked, yet determined men and women of Tokyo Precinct 5 went
back to work.
Lita opened the door for Rei silently. They walked out the door...now
knowing who the REAL heroes were.
Chapter 4
Darien, Chris and Maury walked up the stairs to the temple, contemplating
what they had found. Chris had his laptop open, and had translated a good chunk
of the text, which wasn't in Japanese, but some weird new language. Modern
computers to the rescue...and they managed to translate it.
"It looks like some special program was used for the last clone." Chris
said.
Darien sighed. "So this clone isn't like the others we fought. Great.
More surprises."
"Not only that, but something called 'Dublotine' was used in the clone's
generating gel." Chris said. "I can't find any known chemical that matches it's
name or formula. It must be alien."
Maury shrugged. "So? Maybe it just makes him see in the dark, or have a
longer life-span. Who cares!" he said confidently. "We'll kick his ass like we
did the others!"
They got to the top of the stairs and headed for the temple.
Rei and Lita had returned an hour ago, and they were all waiting for the
boys to return. Luna wasn't happy. "I sure hope THEY had luck in retrieving
some records."
Ami hung her head. "Sorry Luna. My computer wasn't on during the
fights." she shut her little data-recorder.
Lita and Rei said nothing.
Artemis sighed. "Don't worry, Luna. We know there's a clone still out
there, and the Scouts will get him before he does any damage."
Luna nodded. "I know. I just hope there aren't more of them."
Darien walked in the door. "There's only one."
Chris nodded as he came in. "I brought presents!"
Everyone blinked and ran up to him. "Okay, for Andrea, Mina, Rei, Lita,
Serena and the cats..." he pulled out a box. "Donuts!"
Mina grabbed the box and ran off to the corner. "Hey!" Lita yelled,
running over as well.
Ami walked up to Chris. "What about me?"
Maury handed her the test-tube of goo. "Cloning gel!"
Ami looked at it. "Do I eat it?"
Maury was about to nod when Chris elbowed him in the stomach. "No. We
brought it for you to analyze."
Luna walked up to them. "Well?"
"Well? What?" Darien said.
"How do you know there's only one clone?"
Darien blinked. "Oh, oh yeah..."
Chris showed Luna his laptop. "I managed to download their entire network.
In their security files, it shows the intruder alert was still on when we got
there. Before us, though, the only person in or out of the building was our
mystery clone."
Maury nodded. "He must go back every once and a while to see if any more
clones survived. It's the logical meeting place for any survivors."
"And," Darien continued "because it's been a week, there's only a remote
chance any have lived...or have sneaked past the police. If there are any left,
they're in police custody, and aren't going anywhere."
Lita sighed, donut in hand. "Well. In a few days, this will all be over.
All we have to do is track him down, or wait for him back at the warehouse."
Luna nodded. "I hope so."
Chris smiled over to Rei, but Rei still had the semi-vacant look on her
face. "Excuse me...I'm off to bed." he said finally.
Lita blinked as Chris walked out. "I wonder what's wrong with him? He
hasn't been acting weird all day..."
Rei walked off. "I'm going to bed too. Goodnight everyone..."
Ami shrugged. "What was that all about?"
Mina sighed. "I hope it's nothing."
"What? What's nothing!?!" Lita asked anxiously.
Mina sighed. "You mean you haven't noticed?"
Lita shook her head. Serena was suddenly closer. "Well? Tell me! I LOVE
gossip!"
Mina ran her fingers through her hair gingerly. "Well, I think Rei is
really broken up about Chris leaving next week, and she's taking it out on him."
Maury hung his head. "I hope he's okay. Lita's right. He's been acting
normal all day long."
Everyone looked at him.
Maury shrugged. "Chris only acts normally when he's really depressed."
A brilliant white flash was sent out across the darkness as the blade
passed into the moon light. A few more flashes were sent out as the mirror-like
surface darted in and out of the window's view. Chris brought his sword around
in a smooth, slow arch, against an imaginary opponent.
Practicing his art of sword-fighting calmed him during times of unrest.
And right now, he was up at five in the morning because he couldn't sleep. "You
know something," he asked his sword. "You're lucky."
His sword said nothing, but gleamed in understanding.
"The worst problem YOU have to worry about is when next you're going to get
cleaned. And even then, you don't need it." Chris sighed, swinging around his
sword in a quick 'swish.'
He was too busy to notice a small, white cat sitting at the door.
Chris sat down on the dojo floor where he always practiced, took out a
cloth, and began whipping his sword clean. "It's not fair." he told his sword.
"We're meant for each other...and we both love each other with all our
hearts...so why is this so FREAKIN difficult?!?" he yelled.
Artemis watched from afar, hanging his head a little.
Chris looked at his sword. "I don't know anymore...It still seems like
Rei's avoiding me or something. I just wish I knew if she DID love me, or if
I'm just too stupid to see that she doesn't."
Artemis sighed quietly. "The old man was right..." he thought to himself.
The young man in the room ahead of him quietly put away his sword in it's
scabbard. "I wish they knew how I felt. Nobody seems to understand." he sighed
and rested his head on his sword's handle. A tear fell down his cheek. "I wish
they knew what it was like to be unsure who loves you or not."
Artemis felt a tear forming too. "I understand, Chris...You're not alone
on that one." he thought...then got up and walked away.
The white cat walked along down the hallway until he got to Rei's room.
Silently, he let himself in. He hopped up on the bed and sat down next to Rei's
head. "Rei?"
Rei mumbled.
"Rei...WAKE UP!" Artemis yelled in her ear.
Rei's eyes shot wide open and she jumped out of bed in a furry of flying
bed-sheets. "WHAT!!! Wh-wha-what...the hell?" she saw Artemis, sitting on her
pillow. "Artemis? What are you doing here at..." she checked her clock "FIVE
in the MORNING?!?!"
Artemis frowned. "Apparently, we're not the only ones awake."
Rei blinked. "*I*'m not even awake!" she growled. "It's TOO EARLY!" she
yelled under her breath, so as not to wake up the others.
The cat kept his piercing frown on her. "Do you know that Chris is sitting
in the dojo right now, unable to sleep because he's worrying about you?"
Rei's heart fell. "Artemis..." she sighed quietly. "Do we have to talk
about this right now?"
Artemis nodded. "Yes. We do."
She slumped down on her bed. "Fine. You're a guardian, and I'm a student.
If you want to talk about my personal life at five in the morning, who am I to
stop you?"
"As I was saying..." Artemis continued, "Chris is currently unable to sleep
because he's wondering if you still care for him."
Rei felt her stomach tighten. "Artemis...he knows I love him..." she
paused. "Doesn't he?"
"Quite frankly...no. And neither do I, or any of the Scouts. What the
hell happened?" he said suddenly. "You two were the envy of the others until
the news came in that he had to go."
Rei turned away. "I...Artemis...I'd rather not talk..."
"You're going to talk whether you like it or not." Artemis ordered. "You
and I have always stood up for him. He's a good person, and a valuable alley.
He was also your love less than a week ago. Now, I ask you: What the HELL
happened!?!"
Rei began crying.
Artemis blinked, realizing he may have gone too far. "Oh, Rei...I'm
sorry..."
She shook her head. "No...you're right." she sobbed quietly. "It's just
that..."
Artemis walked over to her, putting his paw on her leg. "Yeah?"
Rei struggled to find the words. "It's just that...he's such a great
guy...and it seems like this is all coming to an end because he has to go
suddenly."
Artemis was quiet.
"I just feel betrayed." Rei shrugged, then added a snicker. "It's like he
dragged me in, but then cut the line when he said he had to go."
The cat nodded. "Well...if I tell you something...will you promise not to
tell anyone else."
Rei looked down at him. "Yeah...no problem." she said, whipping away her
tears.
Artemis looked away. "I love Luna."
Rei couldn't help but smile.
"What? Is that a surprise?" Artemis grinned. "I mean, she's the only
other talking moon cat in existence."
Rei shook her head. "No...it's not that." she laughed softly. "Now I know
why you put up with her constantly tormenting you and putting you down."
Artemis sighed. "Well, the point I was TRYING to make is that at least you
two know how you feel about each other." he sighed. "I have no idea what Luna
thinks of me..."
Rei nodded.
"I just don't want either of you to go through what I feel." Artemis said
solemnly. "Chris is wondering why the hell you've suddenly gone 'PMS-y' on him,
and is questioning your relationship."
Rei took a deep breath. "Artemis...you're right." she picked him up and
gave him a hug. "Thanks. You're the best talking cat I know." she said with a
smile.
Artemis shrugged. "No problem. Now go over to the dojo. Chris will
probably still be there."
Rei nodded and got up. She blew him a kiss. "Thanks, Artemis. I hope you
and Luna turn out okay in the long run. We're all rooting for you, you know."
Artemis's eyes shot wide open. "You all KNOW?"
Rei smiled and left.
Chris looked behind him as he heard Rei some in. "Oh...hi."
Rei smiled sheepishly. "A while back, you said I wasn't making any efforts
toward or relationship. How's waking up in the middle of the night just to see
how you're doing?"
Chris shrugged. "Fine, I guess." he said, throwing his sword's disk up in
the air and catching it. "Artemis put you up for this?"
Rei frowned. "Yes. He DID wake me up. But that's not the point."
Chris nodded. "So?"
Rei walked over to him and gave him a hug. "I'm sorry, my love..."
He held her tightly, with a long sigh. "Thank you." he said simply.
"Sorry for scaring you like that, Chris...." Rei sighed too. "I'm just so
scared of losing you."
Chris smiled and cupped her chin in his hand. "Don't be scared...you never
will."
Their lips touched in a tender kiss and things went from there.
Artemis left the two alone, not wanting to intrude, but still happy he
could help.
Ami lay asleep in her room, surrounded by her computer and medical
equipment. She had been trying to pull an all-nighter, but had failed around
four in the morning. Her computer beeped softly, walking her up. "Whoa...how
long was I out?" she asked herself, looking toward her clock.
She had spent all night analyzing the cloning gel sample. It was indeed a
biological growth-formula, but it also had some peculiar chemicals mixed in with
it. If she didn't know better, she would have thought a few of the chemicals
were RNA strands.
However, this made no sense. They were almost like a virus...except, there
was no virus. She dismissed it as a possible growth agent, and was going to
study it further when she had fallen asleep.
The clock read noon. She gasped. "Twelve? Already?!?" she looked at
herself in the mirror and realized she was still in her clothes from yesterday.
She had never in her life slept past ten.
"Shit." she swore to herself. Chris was probably already awake...which
meant she couldn't see him walking around with his housecoat on. She had coming
over to the temple every morning, just so she could see Chris. Oh well...she
thought.
Ami brushed her teeth and hair at the same time, reminding herself all too
much of Serena. She then slowed down. "Hey! What if he's impressed that I
actually slept in? I should wear something sexy. Just in case." She nodded at
her mirror in agreement, and then ran for her closet.
SMASH! Ami poked her head out of her closet. "Huh?"
The vial of gel had fallen off her desk. "AAAAAH!!" she gasped, running
over and scooping it up with her hands before it set in to the carpet. "Yuck!
This stuff is gross..." she funnelled it into a fresh beaker, then, without
thinking, wiped her hands on her shirt.
"Ah, I'll clean up the glass later...I've got a Prince to catch!" she
giggled to herself, running out the door. "And now that the two have broken up,
I might actually have a chance."
Chapter 5
Rei looked up as the sun hit her eyes. "Oh shit...Morning already?"
She looked around quickly, realizing she was in the middle of the dojo with
her nightgown on. Chris was next to her, and they were wrapped up in one of the
loose mats. He was still sleeping soundly, though. Rei smiled and kissed his
forehead. "Don't bother getting up...I'll get your clothes."
Chris nodded, half asleep.
Rei's smile widened. She picked up his sword as well. "I'll put this back
too. You have a good sleep. You'll need all your strength for tonight." she
cooed.
His eyes widened. "I look forward to it."
Rei left with a wink, and he dozed back off to sleep. A few minutes later,
he felt something poking his arm. "Wha? Hey!" he growled, looking up to see
Maury standing over him
with a sword.
"Soooo, lazy-ass...finally woke up, did you?" Maury grinned happily. "Come
on. Practice time!"
Chris frowned and got up, straightening his housecoat. "You know, I was
having a nice weird dream until you decided to wake me up."
His friend smiled. "Ah, so you and Rei patched things up last night, I
see."
Chris smiled happily. "Meow, meow...cat-chow." he said for no particular
reason.
"Well, you're acting weird again...so I guess that's a 'yes'." Maury said,
tossing him a temple outfit.
Chris accepted it and put it on behind a changing screen. "I'll have to
tell Rei I already have clothes, then. She went to get some for me."
Ami knocked on the door. A few seconds later, Chad answered. "Oh, hi Ami.
What's up?"
Ami shrugged. "Not much." she looked around quickly. "Hey, I gotta ask
you something."
Chad blinked behind his shaggy bangs. "Yeah? What?"
"Are Rei and Chris really fighting?" she asked eagerly.
Chad sighed. "Yeah...but she still won't go anywhere near me. And I
haven't seen her all morning, so I haven't asked her lately."
Ami patted him on the back. "Well. You keep trying. I'm sure you and Rei
will get together sooner or later." she said.
Chad smiled. "Yeah! Thanks, Ami! You're a real pal. You really think
she'll break up with Chris?"
Ami walked past him. "If I have anything to say about it, yes."
As she left Chad puzzled at her words, she walked over to Chris' room.
"Hello? Chris?" she opened the door suddenly. "I hope I'm not walking in
on you changing or anything..." she giggled.
Three beds were arranged along the walls. Andrea, Maury and Chris were out
though. Ami sighed. On Chris' bed was his laptop. She smiled to herself. "I
wonder if Chris keeps a secret diary of me."
She walked over to the computer and opened it up. A password screen came
up. She smiled, and typed "AMI" into it. Nothing happened. Ami sighed
disappointingly and typed in "SID". Sure enough, the computer started booting.
Ami was happily tapping her fingers on the bed, waiting for the computer to
offer up all his secrets, when her eyes widened as a picture of Chris came up.
"Now, now...Ami...you KNOW you shouldn't be hacking into my computer." the
animation said.
"This computer is now shut down until I reset it. There is nothing you can
do, so I suggest you just put it down and leave." Chris' image frowned. "If you
don't, this computer will start to emit a warning signal."
Ami shut it quickly, and it powered down. "How did he KNOW!?!" she gasped.
Rei cleared her throat. Ami glanced over to her. She was standing in the
door way with a pissed-off expression on her face. "Ami, you have five seconds
to explain yourself. Then, get off my property."
"But..." Ami gasped.
Rei threw Chris sword onto the bed and picked up the laptop. "What the
HELL is WITH you lately?" she growled. Behind her, Demos and Phobos cawed in
agreement. "Are you STILL pissed off at me for being with Chris?"
Something in Ami snapped. "Don't SAY THAT!" she yelled.
Rei jumped back slightly. Ami looked downright scary. She was almost
foaming at the mouth. "A-Ami?"
To Rei's surprise, Ami grabbed Chris' sword, and withdrew the blade.
"Now...here's the NEW deal, Rei." she growled, holding the deadly blade in front
of her. "You have five seconds to explain YOUR-self...but if I were you...I'd
use that time to run."
Rei gasped...then ran out the door, nearly tripping over her robe. "HELP!
AMI'S GONE WACKO!"
Ami was already hot on her tail, flailing around the sword. "Now you're
goinna die, bitch! HAHA!" she cackled. "No freaking fire-ball's going to save
you NOW!"
Grandpa poked his head out of his bedroom sleepily. "Rei! I told you to
keep it down! I wanted to sleep in..."he turned to see Ami running down the
hall after his granddaughter, holding a sword in an attack position.
Grandpa blinked. "Ami!! Put that down! You could hurt someone!!"
Ami turned to face Grandpa. "SHUT-UP!!!"
Grandpa went wide-eyed as Ami continued her pursuit. "Well...I can't say I
approve of kids today and their little 'ninja' games..." he shrugged. "One of
these days, someone will get an eye poked out, and THEN we'll see how fun it is
to run around with swords."
And so, because Grandpa is kind-hearted, and a little slow, Ami managed to
catch up to Rei, who was desperately trying to stay out of Ami's reach. "Ami!
You're not thinking clearly! Put down the sword!" she gasped, diving into the
pond.
Ami was hot on her heels and dove in too. "Wrong! For the first time in
my life, I'm thinking clear!" she growled, swimming after the priestess. "I'm
goinna cut off your cunt and FEED it to you!"
Rei got to the shore first, and started running again, which gained her
some time. "AMI! You're acting like a maniac! Snap out of it! PLEEEEZE!" she
yelled, taking off for the steps to lead down to street level. If she could get
to a populated area, she might be able to find a police officer or something to
help her. Hell, she didn't even have her Star-Wand with her. No ofudas either.
Ami was out of the water and seemed to have a second wind. "I'm catching
up!" she giggled, holding the sword like a baseball bat. "Strike ONE!"
She swung around, catching the tip of the sword on Rei's pant leg. It
produced a clean slice. Rei felt her breath wavering as she was running out of
room to run. Ami had cornered her into a patch of trees. "Ami...come on! What
the HELL is wrong with you!?!" she asked desperately.
Ami just smiled. "Strike TWO!" the next hit caused her pant leg to rip off
and tangle into her feet.
Rei dove forward as her feet bound up, and landed into a bush. Ami skidded
to a stop as Rei desperately tried to get to her feet. "Mmm, I thought you'd be
more of a challenge to kill." Ami mocked. "Oh well." she brought the sword up
over her head of a final blow.
"STRIKE FISS!"
As Ami brought down the blade, it disappeared in a snowy-blue cloud, and
left her to fall over, right into Rei's foot. Rei looked up from the bush to
see Chris, running over to her, sword in hand. "Chris?"
"Are you okay, Rei?" Chris asked, gently picking her up by her arm.
"I-I'm fine..." Rei gasped, still shaken from almost being sliced in half.
Chris reverted his transformation with a thought, and his sword returned to
where Ami had been holding it before he had recalled it. It dropped harmlessly
into the ground. Ami slowly got up, still dazed from the fall. "Honey? Why
did you do that?" she asked quietly. "I was about to get Rei out of the way..."
"Forgive me, Ami..." Chris put his fist in his other hand and decked Ami
across the jaw with a swinging punch. "GOD that felt good!" he yelled, shaking
his hand as Ami fell unconscious into a heap on the ground. "Nobody touches my
sword!"
Maury sighed, putting away his throwing knives. "One question. What the
HELL is going on?"
Chapter 6
Ami woke up ten minutes later to see everyone looking down at her. "What
the....?" she shook her head slightly, trying to move. Her arms and legs were
tied to the bed, though. "HEY! What's going on, here!?!"
Mina loomed over to her. "Are you okay, Ami? You flipped out back there
and tried to kill Rei!"
Chris hugged Rei tightly.
Maury nodded happily. "Einstein here remembered his transformation causes
his sword to transport to his side. A second later, and Rei would have been
dissected into tiny cubes!"
Rei smiled. "You sure have a way with words, Maury."
Ami looked up at Rei. "Oh, shut up. I really don't feel like hearing you
gloat." she smiled slightly. "Why don't you save me the trouble, and just kill
yourself right now. Please?" she added sweetly. A bit too sweetly, actually.
It was rather spooky to hear.
Serena, who had known Ami the longest, was shocked beyond words. Everyone
else became bug-eyed. Ami hadn't just flipped out temporarily...she was going
for the whole ball of wax.
Lita leaned closer to Ami. "Ami! What's gotten into you?!?" she paused.
"*I'm* usually the one who gets pissed off like that!"
"I don't believe this..." Andrea exclaimed. "It's like 'The Exorcist' or
something. She's freaking possessed!"
Ami just frowned. "Okay...how's this. The first one who lets me free...I
promise not to kill."
"Too much sun???" Artemis grinned and shrugged.
Darien bent down beside Ami. "Aw, man! What's this stuff on her shirt?"
Chris kneeled beside him, "I don't kn- wait! Hey! Isn't that the slime we
found at the cloning factory?"
Darien nodded, "Mm-hmm, and by the looks of it, she had some on her hands.
That's why she wiped them off...on her shirt, obviously."
Mina scratched her head, "Do ya think that's why Ami's acting so weird?
You think it might have some psychotic effect?"
Luna sighed. "We could ask Ami to scan it some more...but of course its
Ami whose gone nuts on us."
"Do we ever get a break?" Maury grumbled, fiddling with the flaps on his
jacket.
Lita looked at him with a cocked eyebrow, "Hey...I've been here longer than
you, so don't you be complaining already...rookie." She smiled.
Darien looked at Chris with a grin. "I think we should see what other
information we can dig up from 'Creation Station'. Whadda ya say?"
Chris smiled evilly, "As long as we get to break-and-enter..."
Maury nodded. "I'm going to stay here...just in case our little clone-
buddy drops by for a visit.
Once again, Darien and Chris were at the Watcher's warehouse. It was early
morning by the time they got there, so they had to work quickly before anyone
saw them there.
A sliver of sunlight fell on the floor as Chris hacked his way through a
brick wall with his sword. "FISS!" he yelled, making his sword shoot out an
energy pulse that knocked the rest of the hole in the wall for them to get
through.
Darien sighed as they began looking around. "Well, with that sword, you'll
never have to worry about locking yourself out of the house."
Chris sheathed his sword and took off his sunglasses. "The only problem is
that a katana really stands out in a crowd." he added a smile. "Then again, not
too many people go around with capes..."
Darien walked into the cloning room. "You check out the command centre
again. Maybe they kept some paper-files."
Chris nodded and walked to the other end of the structure. "Just yell if
you need any help."
Darien nodded. "Also, check for any independent computers. I read
somewhere that companies are backing up data on separate systems in case hackers
get into their networks."
Chris smiled. "Of course!"
He put back on his sunglasses and pulled his laptop out of it's pocket on
his back.
Just as Mercury had gained VR goggles with her data-computer, the Scout's
also upgraded their suits with each new power. Chris learned if he brought a
computer or anything item he didn't want to carry, he could flip it in a hidden
pocket on his coat's back.
He opened his laptop in quick snap, and preceded to "Tri-Cord" the area.
"Star-date...Fifty-two...point NINE! No signs...of computer records...but-I've
GOT...TO...FIND them, Mister!" he said in a "Captain Kirk" voice.
Alas, his computer couldn't scan like Mercury's. "Looks like I'll have to
do this the hard way..." he muttered, walking over to what looked like a
kitchen.
Darien carefully turned over a fallen cloning-bed to get at a wall storage
unit. "What do we have here?" he said to himself.
On the top shelf was a canister of a translucent liquid. Blue in colour.
This didn't make any sense. The cloning gel they found on the last clone's bed
was green. That meant, this stuff wasn't cloning gel. What was it, then?
He carefully pocketed the canister and searching the rest of the room.
Maury sat across the room, reading a magazine. Ami was on the other, still
tied to the bed. "You know, Maury..." Ami said sweetly, "If you could help m
out of these nasty ropes, I'm sure I could..."
Maury looked up at her. "Be quiet. I don't care if you'd help me win the
lottery or something. All I care about is that you were chasing around Rei with
an intent to..." he smiled. "What was it? Oh yes...You said you were going to
slice off her cunt and feed it to her."
Ami batted her eyelashes. "But I meant it in the nicest way."
Maury lowered his eyebrows. "The worst part is that this little 'psycho-
binge' you're on is an improvement!"
Suddenly, Artemis came in, yawning. "Any word from Strike Fiss and Tuxy?"
he asked.
Maury shook his head. "Nope. Your shift?"
Artemis nodded. "Sure, I'll take it from here. I think Grandpa was going
to get breakfast. Could you bring me some?"
Maury nodded. "No prob. Oh, and watch out..." he pointed to Ami. "She's
still at it."
Artemis watched as Maury left the room, closing the door behind him.
Artemis sighed and jumped up onto the chair Maury had been sitting on.
Ami kept her eyes on Artemis. All she needed to do was escape. It was
only a matter of time.
Chapter 7
Darien tapped his foot impatiently as Chris worked under a nearby desk with
a computer on it. "How much longer is this going to take? It's already coming
on noon."
Chris sat up, banging his head on the desk. "Fuck!" he clutched his neck.
"I HATE when I do that..."
Darien sighed loudly.
Chris sighed back. "It's going to take longer unless you can find a flat-
head screw-driver."
"Fine. I think I saw one by the cloning machines." Darien walked off. "I
don't like this. We should have been gone...LONG ago."
Chris slid back under the desk. They eventually did find the back-up
computer. A simple PC. However, it was in a rather heavy-duty steel case, and
Chris didn't want to cut it open in case he also damaged the hard-drive inside.
As Darien walked over to the shelf he saw the screwdriver on, he noticed a
beam of sunlight coming down from the roof. "Mmm, that wasn't there before..."
he looked up.
A roof panel had been removed. Before he could realize why, he felt a
swift punch to his kidney.
He fell down, clutching his side. As he rolled over, he saw his attacker.
The last Watcher Ninja. "You!" he exclaimed, reaching for a rose.
The ninja said nothing, but kicked Darien in his side. That only made
Darien mad, and he rolled a few metres, allowing him space to stand up. The
ninja dropped into a defensive stance.
In a swift movement of his arm, Darien let loose a rose at lightning speed.
The ninja quickly jumped over it, and toward Darien in a drop-kick.
Not to be outdone, Darien managed to take out his walking-staff, and
pointed it's tip toward the incoming attack. "Eat THIS!" he yelled, magically
extending the staff.
It smashed into the ninja's chest, causing it to explode. Instead of
blood, however, a rain of green slime splattered on Tuxedo Mask's entire front.
He stepped back, disgusted as the Ninja's remains splattered to the ground with
a sickening slurp.
"Oh my GOD!" Darien gasped. "That was HORRIBLE!" he said, feeling a bit
queasy.
Chris came running when he heard the fight. "Hey! Are you alright?!?"
Darien shivered. "That guy was some sort of bomb! Shit! What is this
crap?!?"
Chris looked at Darien's hand, which was covered in the stuff. "Bloody
hell...that looks like the shit we got from the cloning bed!"
"Wait..." Darien went wide-eyed. "You mean the same stuff that caused Ami
to go wacko?"
Chris also went wide-eyed. "Shit. Quick, we've got to wash that shit off
of you! Let's get back to the temp..."
Darien shook his head. "My apartment's closer. I'll call your computer
after I get cleaned up. Hopefully this shit is washable."
Chris nodded as Darien ran off, reverting his uniform to civilian clothes.
Even then, his face and hands were covered in slime. Chris looked to his own
hand, which now held the hard-drive. "Well, at least the ninja's dead."
Ami had been quiet for nearly three hours. Artemis became curious. He
poked his head over the foot of the bed. "Ami?"
Ami seemed to be sleeping.
Artemis crawled up on the bed. "Ami? Are you asleep?" he whispered.
Suddenly, Ami began convulsing, throwing him off the bed. "ARGH! She's
having a seizure!"
Just as quickly as it had started...she stopped. Artemis leapt back on the
bed. She was once again sleeping soundly. "Ami!?!" he yelled, shaking her arm.
Ami woke up slowly. "Uh? Where am I?"
"Ami?" Artemis asked carefully. "Are you okay?"
Ami seemed confused. "Why am I all tied up? How did I get into the
temple?"
Artemis went wide-eyed. "Ami! You're better!"
"The last thing I remember was scanning that gel sample last night..." Ami
shook her head. "What happened?"
Artemis started untying her ropes with his teeth. "We think you were
infected with a virus or something. I'm just glad it was only a temporary
thing."
Once Ami's hand was free, she started untying her feet. "Was I asleep?"
Artemis snickered. "Hell no! You were acting really loopy until a few
hours ago. Then, you had a seizure or something. I guess that must have meant
your body got rid of the virus."
"Excellent. That's exactly what I wanted you to think."
Artemis looked up from Ami's foot to see her already free of her arm
restraints.
"What?"
Ami smiled at the cat, then picked him up by the scruff of his neck. "You
fell for the oldest trick in the book, Guardian."
Artemis sighed. "This just isn't my day."
She got free of her final restraint and walked over to the closet. "Now
Artemis. What am I going to do with you? After all, I can't have you going
around, warning Rei that I'm free, can I?"
Rei, however, was down-town for a nice afternoon of shopping. She had
washed Ami's infected clothes, and was going out buy some good disinfectant,
just in case. She smiled as she saw Chris walking down the street.
"Hey! Chris!" She waved.
Chris spotted her and walked over. "Hey, Rei! What are you doing down-
town? I thought you were going to be guarding Ami all day?"
Rei shrugged. "Naw. Artemis offered, so I decided to take a break. I
haven't been out of the house all week."
They hugged tightly for a moment. "Ahh, so when should I take you out for
dinner." Chris reminded her of previous plans.
Rei blinked. "Oh yeah! I completely forgot. Mmm, how about tomorrow?
After all, we have to make sure Ami's okay, right?"
"Sounds good to me!" Chris smiled.
A sudden beep alerted them to Chris' laptop in his book-bag. "What's
that?"
Chris shrugged. "Probably Darien."
Chapter 8
Darien looked like hell. Literally. It looked like he had been stuck in a
furnace all morning, then kicked around for a few hours. He now was in his
Tuxedo Mask outfit, and was leaning against the side of a telephone booth.
He remembered after he got home, he had taken a shower, and even cleaned
all his clothes. He even took extra-special care to make sure he washed away
all the slime.
It didn't work.
In a last ditch attempt, he had managed to drag himself over to a phone
booth and was dialling up Chris' laptop.
"Come on...open up your damn computer, Fiss..."
Eventually, Chris answered. "Hey! Darien! What's up?"
Darien coughed slightly.
Rei looked around at the alley. "Mmm, cozy. I really like the trash.
Tell Darien if he wants to invite Serena for a picnic with us, he can..."
Chris' eyes widened as he heard Darien's voice. "Oh shit...you're
infected!?!"
Rei tried to lean closer to hear what Darien was saying, but could only
hear mumbling. "What's wrong?" she asked.
Chris suddenly stood up, "Don't worry, buddy! Hang on. We'll be right
there!"
Rei gasped as Chris stuffed his laptop into his bad and began running.
"What's wrong?!" she gasped, catching up to him.
"Darien's gone psycho too. He's about to kill Serena's dad." Chris said
quickly, pulling out his transformation disk. "How far is Serena's house from
here?!?"
Rei looked at a nearby street-sign. "Shit. Five blocks...at least! We
can't make it on time if we run!"
Chris nodded. "Darien was calling from a phone close Serena's house. We
need transportation!"
Rei nodded. "Mars Star POWER!" she yelled.
Chris followed a second later. "Strike FISS!"
The two burst out of the alleyway in full costumes.
Darien felt the last bit of his sanity slip away, and he slammed down the
phone receiver. His eyes locked onto Serena's house, which was only down the
street. "Don't worry, my love." he began mumbling to an imaginary Serena.
"I'll get rid of your dad for you, and then we can be together!"
He reached into his tuxedo and pulled out his walking staff, and a
department-store catalogue.
Darien and Serena's father never DID get along. Once he had suspected
Darien of being his daughter's boyfriend, he began flipping out. He'd always
insist that Darien was too old, or that Serena wasn't old enough for dating yet.
Last week, he had even hung up on Darien after he asked politely where Serena
was. *Normally*, he would shrug off that rude remark, but with the virus taking
control of his judgement, he was hardly 'normal.'
Getting past Serena's mom was another story. She was nice, and he had no
desire to kill her. He had to devise a way to get past her in a peaceful
manner.
He smiled as he rung the gate buzzard.
Serena's mom answered. "Hello?"
Darien coughed, putting on a fake accent. "Hello, Madame. I am from Jiffy
Spiffy's Discount Tuxedo Rentals. I was wondering if you would like a free
catalogue?"
Serena's mother poked her head out of a window to check. What she saw was
a young man in a tuxedo, holding a catalogue. "Uh, sure! That would be great.
My husband needs a tux for a company party that's coming up this weekend."
The buzzer rang, and the gate opened for him. Darien strolled up casually
to the door. "Thank you Madame." he said politely as she offered to let him in.
"Wow, that certainly is a nice costume." she laughed.
Darien smiled behind his mask. "Well, the boss makes me wear it."
"I'll go get my husband." she said happily, walking down the hallway and
turning at the living room.
Darien's grin widened. "This is too easy. I should have killed the
asshole a LONG time ago!"
Rei slammed the door behind her as Chris pried off the steering column
plastic. "You never told me you could hot-wire cars!" Rei smirked.
Chris shrugged, finding the right wires. "What else is the Internet good
for?" the car's engine roared into life. "Hold on!"
Rei held on tight as he slammed the car into gear, and it leapt forward
from it's parking stall. "Turn right!" she yelled over the roaring engine.
He complied, and sent the sporty little car into a sliding turn to the
right. "How much further? For all we know, Darien already killed the poor
guy!"
Rei focused on the blur of street signs and traffic. "Okay, cut across the
park! It's the fastest way!"
The car leapt up on the curb and crashed through a series of hedges at
breakneck speed. "Oooh, this is going to HURT!" Chris yelled as they hit a
hill.
The car leapt over a park bench, and preceded to tear up grass as it
continued across a baseball diamond.
"How much further!?!" Chris yelled, trying to steer around various trees
and people.
"Past those bushes!" Rei pointed, holding desperately onto her seat-belt.
She smiled suddenly. "You know something?"
Chris glanced over to her. "Yeah?"
"You're sexy when you're high-speed-driving, you know?" her grin widened.
He smiled back. "I try." He put the car into top gear and they launched
out of the park onto the street, barely missing a police officer. "You know, I
can't help but notice how most seventeen-year-olds don't get into many high-
speed chases. Do you think I'm unlucky?"
"Well, you aren't being chased." Rei smiled. "Technically, we aren't in a
high-speed..." she paused "THERE!" Rei shouted, pointing to a nearby house.
Chris nodded. "Get ready! It's kiwi time!"
Rei looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Uh?"
"Never mind..." Chris smiled as he parked the car in front of the driveway.
A frown crossed Darien's lips as Serena's dad came into the room. He
looked him over. "Mmm, nice costume. A little early for Halloween, aren't we?"
Darien smiled, and extended his staff.
"What the hell?" Serena's dad stepped back. "How'd you do that?!?"
Tuxedo Mask looked over to his staff, then pointed it at the man's chest.
"Like this."
The staff extended outwards, throwing back Mr. Tsukino into the wall as it
hit his chest. Without a pause, Tuxedo Mask hurtled two roses from his jacket
into the shoulders of Tsukino's shirt.
He was now pinned against the wall. "Ahh! HELP!" he began screaming as
Darien advanced towards him.
Darien sighed. "You're goinna pay for being such an asshole. You should
have been more polite."
The man frowned. "What the HELL are you talking about? Do I even KNOW
you?"
"Honey?" Mrs. Tsukino came in the room with a tray full of tea. "What's
going on here!" she gasped as the situation clicked in her mind. "Oh my..."
Darien quickly threw his rose at her skirt, pinning her against the living
room wall. She began screaming and threw her tea-tray at Darien. He carelessly
batted it away with his staff. "I'm sorry, Miss. But I'm afraid I cannot allow
you to interfere. Sorry you had to witness this."
"But WHY!?!" she sobbed.
"TUXEDO MASK!" Rei called out from the front door. "STOP!"
Darien looked behind him to see both Chris and Rei, who were very
cautiously advancing on him. "Come on, buddy...put away the rose." Chris urged.
Their tuxedo-clad friend paused, holding his head. "Mars? Saturn? How
did I get here? What's going on?"
Rei smiled slightly. "Easy now...you're very sick. We have to get you to
safety. Let's leave these nice people alone."
The Tsukinos both nodded their heads quickly.
Darien put away his rose. "My god..." he said softly, realizing what he
almost did.
Chris managed to lead him out of the door as Rei apologized for the
intrusion. "Sorry about all this. Normally, he's a lot sweeter and less
homicidal."
"Yeah...no problem..." they both replied, white as sheets from the
experience.
Rei walked out with a final wave. "Sorry! Uh, have a nice day!"
As the door closed, Serena came downstairs. "Hey...who was here? I heard
the door."
Her parents were almost in tears.
"What?" she demanded. "Hey..." she walked over to one of the roses Darien
had pinned her father to the wall with. She plucked it out of the wall...barely
noticing it was covered with a weird, sticky goo. "What did I miss?"
Chapter 9
Rei had gone back to the temple with Darien while Chris returned their
"borrowed" car. He parked the vehicle and ran before anyone saw him. "Whew!"
Chris sighed, "I've got to get more driving in my busy schedule."
One thing was bugging him, though. Why did Darien go mental? He said he
had a shower as soon as he had gotten home. Chris looked around the alley for a
place to sit. "Okay..." he said aloud, sitting on a wooden box. "Ami got
splattered by the stuff we scooped up for her to analyze." he paused. "And
Darien got splattered when the clone exploded. If he had a shower and was all
clean...then that means..."
Chris' brain gasped to itself as it remembered what Rei had said earlier.
"She washed Ami's clothes?!?"
If water didn't wash away the goo...or at least not the effects of the
goo...then that means Rei could be infected! And he and Rei had been in contact
for quite some time that day, so that means... "I'm infected."
Chris reached into his bag and pulled out his laptop. He put on the
speaker-phone, and called the temple. Three rings later, he heard the phone
pick up. "Rei! Rei! Are you there!?!"
AMI was on the other end. "Hello, Chris...it's so lovely to hear your
voice again!"
"Ami? How'd you get free? Where's Rei? I need to speak to her!" Chris
replied.
"Oh, Rei is in her room right now, talking with the others. I'd call her
for you, but then I'd alert them to my mobile condition. Sorry! Besides, if I
gotta be tied up to a bed, I'd rather it be by your hands!" she giggled. "Hey,
that's not a bad idea."
Chris growled and slammed his laptop shut, terminating the call.
"Wonderful."
Ami shrugged and hung up the phone. "Oh well. Back to business." she
said, walking over to the Temple's kitchen.
"Now, I need something that will really cut her up...but I still want her
to suffer..." she giggled to herself, rooting through the cupboards for a knife
or something.
Andrea walked in, stretching. It was a good five seconds until she noticed
Ami. "What the hell?!?" she yelled.
Ami gasped and turned around to see Andrea already running toward her. "Oh
no you don't, Sailor Hooze!" she jumped up onto the counter-top and leapt over
her head.
Andrea, though full of spirit and determination, was still not as
experienced as the others, and smacked head-first into the counter. She tumbled
to the ground, holding her head. "Fuck!" she said simply.
Ami smiled. "I admire your determination, so I won't kill you. Besides,
you're Chris' sister, and I doubt that he'd love me so much if I killed you."
Andrea got up, still holding her head. "Now you're goinna get it, Ami!"
she reached behind her for a weapon and produced a frying pan. A second later,
it was hurtling toward Ami's head.
The blue-haired girl tried to duck, but the pan's handle spun around and
whacked her in the face. She fell over, holding her nose. "MY NOOOBE!!"
The sound of the pan hitting the floor alerted the others. Maury came
skidding into the kitchen with a knife already in hand. "Andrea! What's going
on!?!"
Andrea pointed to Ami, who took off down the hall. "Hurry! We gotta get
her!"
Mina gasped. "Where's Artemis? He was guarding Ami!"
Rei nodded. "You go find out what she did to him. We'll get Ami!"
Mina nodded, and the group split up.
Andrea, Maury, Rei and Lita were running after Ami now. "I sure wish
Serena was here to help!" Lita said, now in the lead with Maury.
"She was still at home." Rei explained. "The Tuxedo-Mask thing probably
made her parents edgy, so she probably stayed home to comfort them."
"She's goin' out side!" Maury said, following behind Ami only by a few
metres now.
Rei sighed. "Isn't it amazing how Grandpa and Chad are always out
somewhere when these things happen?"
Ami leapt out the back door and made a break for the bushes. They were
fairly dense, and it looked like her only chance. Rei was too well protected to
simply make a stand and try and kill her.
The thing she forgot was that Rei grew up on Cherri Hill, and knew the
woods inside-and-out. "Maury! You and Lita go around to that large ruffled
tree over there, while Andrea and I head her off."
Maury blinked. "But that's in the opposite direction she's going!"
Rei nodded. "Just get your knife ready. Try not to totally kill her,
okay? It's this fucking slime that's got everyone mental."
Maury shrugged and took off with Lita toward the tree that Rei had pointed
out.
Andrea followed Rei into the bush. "Where are we going? She's already too
far ahead!"
Rei smiled. "I used to play hide-and-seek in here all the time. Trust
me." she said, darting under a low-hanging branch.
Ami looked behind her. Rei and Andrea were still behind her. "Shit!" she
gasped, running low on breath. Ahead, she saw a narrow path. "Perfect!" she
smiled, now able to run without trees in her way.
"Rei! She's getting away!" Andrea yelled. "I'm goinna transform."
Rei suddenly stopped, putting her hand on Andrea's shoulder. "Don't
bother."
Ami saw a clearing up ahead. "HaHA! See ya later, bitch!" she yelled back
at Rei.
Suddenly, next to the path by a ruffled evergreen, Maury and Lita stepped
out into her path. "Going somewhere?" Lita growled.
Maury quickly whipped out a throwing knife and launched it at Ami. It hit
the fleshy part of her leg and she fell over in pain.
To Lita and Maury's shock, a green slime shot out from the wound, spraying
all over them. "Aww! GROOOOOSS!" Lita yelled, running away from the spray.
Rei and Andrea had looped around and saw. "Oh shit..." Rei said.
"What?" Andrea asked.
Maury wiped the goo off his face with his shirt. "Something tells me this
isn't good."
Rei sighed and glanced over to Andrea. "Well, at least us two aren't
infected."
"Um...Rei?" a voice behind them said.
Rei turned to see Chris coming up the steps. "Hi Chris! You'll never
guess what happened."
Chris looked over to Ami, who was now unconscious from the loss of
blood...er...slime. "Great. Now we're all infected."
Andrea's eyes shot wide open. "What?"
Chris sighed. "Rei, when you washed Ami's clothes, you were infected. And
you just patted Andrea on the back. Serena's probably the only one of us who
isn't going to start acting crazy in half an hour."
Rei looked at her hand. "Oh...Are you sure?"
"The virus, or whatever the hell that goo is, cannot be washed off." Chris
said solemnly. He took out his pocket-knife and flipped it open. "See?" he
made a small incision on his finger. Sure enough, instead of a blood, a bead of
greenish-slime appeared.
Maury looked at Ami. "Thanks a bunch."
Lita blinked. "Wait a second! Mina isn't infected either!"
Rei gasped. "Unless she touches Artemis..."
Chapter 10
They all ran into the room as Mina was giving Artemis a big hug. The two
looked over to see all the Scouts sigh simultaneously.
"What? Can't I hug a cat without getting strange looks?" Mina joked.
Chris shrugged, walking down the hallway. "Oh, go ahead. Hug anything you
want now."
"What's with HIM?" Mina asked the others.
Lita pointed to Artemis. "You're infected too, Mina. You just hugged
Artemis."
Artemis went wide-eyed. "Oh shit...you mean the goo isn't water-soluble?"
he jumped down from Mina's arms. "Ami touched me! SHIT!" he began trying to
dust himself off.
"It's no use, Artemis." Maury said. "You're stuck with it the moment you
touch it." to prove the point, he used his knife to draw a bead of his own
blood. Maury and Lita had just been exposed to the slime, but already their
blood looked slightly greenish.
Rei nodded. "Okay, first of all, Mina, Lita, Andrea and Maury. We should
all try and get rid of any slime on our skins. Maybe we'll have more time if we
have less contact with the stuff."
Maury nodded. "Good idea."
"Darien was the most-exposed, and he changed in only an hour or so. If we
can get twice that, maybe we'll have time to search the Watcher's database for a
cure."
"Okay, me, Chris and Mina will probably have the longest time. We were
exposed to it second-handed through you guys. Who knows about Artemis. He's a
lot smaller, and has less body-mass. It might be quicker for him." Andrea
sighed.
Artemis frowned at her. "Thanks for the wonderful information."
"Freakin' clones....I don't believe this!" Chris mumbled, walking down the
hallway. How the hell could have they all been infected with some virus? They
survived countless assholes with super-powers, natural disasters, and aliens.
Why a simple virus?
He walked into the room where Darien was resting. He was tied up now to
prevent him from another assassination attempt of Serena's father. "Hey, Chris.
How's it going?" he asked, slightly dazed.
Chris shrugged. "Well, now we're all infected except Luna and Serena. I
guess you could call that a bad day."
Luna came in. "Hi Luna." Chris said.
Darien was suddenly untied. He walked over to Luna, and started molesting
her.
"Uh!?!" Chris blinked.
Darien was suddenly back on the chair, tied up again. Luna was nowhere to
be found. Chris went wide-eyed. "Shit. The virus..." he realized it was
taking over.
His pal looked concerned. "Chris?"
"Oh, it's just this fucking slime. I think it's already affecting me."
"How?" he asked.
Chris smiled. "I thought I just saw you trying to have sex with Luna."
"Uh?" He blinked. "Oh...well it affected me differently...thank GOD..."
Chris frowned. "That's weird. Why would it affect us differently?"
"Well, I think it just amplifies our sub-conscious." Darien explained. "In
fact, while I'm concentrating, I think I can get past the virus' effects. Like
right now while I'm talking to you."
Chris nodded. "Great. Grr, cheese."
"What the hell?"
"Oh," Chris explained. "I'm probably going to get a lot weirder. My sub-
conscious is a pretty fucked up place." he grinned.
Darien smiled, then turned serious. "You know, I just remembered
something."
"Yeah?"
"What about the Outer Scouts? Pluto and the others probably have never
touched the slime. We might be able to ask for their help."
Chris remembered the apartment where he had met with Pluto and the others
when the Lords had attacked, so he and Maury decided to go check it out.
"THIS is the place?" Maury asked.
They had pulled up in front of a run-down series of shacks and apartment
buildings. They looked abandoned, and had probably been so for a number of
years. Chris shrugged. "Maybe they moved?"
Maury smiled, "Well, I suppose we should get into character."
Chris nodded and pulled out his disk. "Good idea. STRIKE FISS!"
"SOL!" Maury followed. A brief flash of sunlight hit him, transforming him
into Prince Destiny. Chris was enveloped by a blue sphere of energy,
dissipating a second later to reveal him in his costume.
"Let's go." Chris motioned for the door, taking out his sword.
Maury threw an explosive throwing star at the door's lock, and it flew open
in a muffled bang. "Party on."
They made their ways up the stairs to the room where Chris had been. It
still looked the same. Chris tried to knock, but it opened as his fist hit the
surface. "Hello? Anyone home?"
Pluto was sitting on the window-ledge. "I've been expecting you."
Maury smiled. "Cheesy line number fifty-three."
Chris walked up to her. "I suppose you know about the Watcher-virus,
then."
She nodded. "We had a feeling the Lords brought some bio-weapons with
them."
Maury frowned. "You KNEW about this?? Why the hell didn't you TELL US?!?"
"Oh please. We can't keep coming to your rescue every time you encounter
something knew." she sighed. "How else are you going to learn?"
Chris raised an eyebrow. "So now the tune is 'we're letting you learn for
yourselves? I thought it was 'we don't give a shit' last time? I mean,
because of you not warning us that the Lords used bio-weapons, we're all
infected...including Andrea."
Pluto did look concerned. "I'm sorry...but we didn't even know about the
virus until we heard about the Tuxedo-Mask incident. We just knew it was a
possibility."
Chris didn't stop. "And what do you mean by 'we'll never learn'? You
didn't come to our rescue...we had to save YOUR asses! You didn't do shit!"
Maury nodded just to emphasize the point. "Yeah!"
Pluto frowned. "Did you come here for help, or to insult me? 'Cause if
you want, I'll leave right now."
Maury sighed. "Okay, just listen up. We're going to try and quarantine
ourselves from the rest of the city so we don't endanger anyone. You guys will
have to look after things on the outside. Are you up to that?"
Pluto shook her head. "I'm afraid my team is hardly capable of looking
after the small jobs like yours can. However, I must ask: Why are you going
into isolation?"
"I just told you..." Maury began.
"Why not just use call upon your best asset?" Pluto interrupted. "Just ask
Sailor Moon to heal you with her crystal."
Before the two princes could say anything, she leapt out the window and was
gone into the night.
"The crystal!" Chris smiled. "All we have to do is get Serena to do zap us
with it!"
Maury nodded. "I don't know why we didn't think of it before!"
"We're new." Fiss shrugged with a smile.
Serena tiptoed quietly into her parent's bedroom. They were sleeping quite
soundly. "Perfect." she grinned to do herself.
Her hand found its way over to do her dad's wallet. He didn't even stir as
she lifted it from the little end-table by his pillow. Mr Tsukino provided for
his family quite well, and there was more than a thousand dollars worth of yen
in it...plus a number of credit-cards.
More than enough to do cover the little 'vacation' she had planned.
She left their room just as quietly as when she came in. It was time to do
do some planning. Serena walked over to do the phone, picked it up, and
dialled.
The phone picked up on the other end. "Welcome to do the Alberta Tourism
Information Hotline!" it announced proudly. "All our operators are busy right
now...Please wait until an operator can service your call. Thank you!"
Chapter 11
Rei and Lita burst through the door. "She's not at the mall! We checked
everywhere!" they said.
Chris had just got off the phone with Serena's mother. "She hasn't been at
home all day. They said she wasn't there when they woke up."
Mina, taking the role as leader, nodded her head thoughtfully. "Okay.
Where else does Serena hang out?"
"Mmm, well..." Andrea paused, "she might be at the arcade or comic store."
Chris was already dialling the arcade when Ami opened the door and sat
down. They had put her in a kind of straight-jacket, just to make sure she
wouldn't try killing Rei. Chris had suggested they also put a "Hannibal Lecter"
mask on her to make sure she didn't bite anyone, but that idea was turned down.
Rei avoided making eye-contact with her.
"I think I can scan the city for Sailor Moon's crystal." Ami said quietly.
They all looked at her in surprise. "Wow...she's not mental anymore!"
Maury said hopefully.
Chris shook his head. "No. She's still infected, it's just that we're all
concentrating on finding Serena, so it doesn't affect our minds as well."
Ami nodded. "If I can use my data-computer, I should be able to pin-point
her. Remember how we found the rainbow crystal inside Hercules the cat?"
Lita nodded. "Yeah, if we can just..." she paused and looked over to
Maury. "Oooh, baby..."
Maury went wide-eyed as she literally jumped him from three metres away and
started to try and undress him.
Chris smiled slightly. "Uh, Lita? You have to CONCENTRATE!!"
Lita looked up from a kiss with Maury. "Oh...sorry...I kinda lost it for a
second there."
Rei sighed. "This is only going to get worse. Who knows if we can shrug
off the effects once the gel goes into full effect?"
Ami coughed. "Yeah...as I was saying, I'll need my data computer...so
could someone untie me?"
Artemis chuckled to himself. "Someone else can do THAT. *I*'m not falling
for the same thing twice."
Luna frowned at him. "I think you're already being effected. You haven't
tried to take a nap ONCE today."
Artemis turned to look her in the eyes. "Oh, Luna, my sweet kitten, if
only you knew..."
Rei coughed, interrupting. "Come on, Artemis. Don't be going around
saying things you'll regret later." she smiled.
Artemis sighed and returned to his watchful demeanour.
Chris finished talking with Andrew. "No luck here. We'll have to untie
Ami."
Mina nodded. "Okay, people...lets try to find her before she can get half-
way across the world or something, okay?"
"Oh shit." Maury said as they looked out over the Tokyo sky-line.
The Scouts were now all gathered on the roof of a nearby building. Nearby,
that is, to the Tokyo International Airport. Sailor Moon's crystal was inside.
And it was moving. Ami, who had successfully lead them to the signal without
trying to kill anyone, was currently typing away on her data-computer. "She's
headed for the boarding area. If we want to figure out what plane she's going
on, then we better get Chris access to their computers soon."
Chris was already on his computer, and had hacked into the airport via his
cellular phone. "No need. I'm working on it."
Darien sighed. "First of all, why is she trying to leave Tokyo?"
Mina shrugged. "She never really wanted to be Sailor Moon. Maybe she's
trying to get away from it all."
Maury nodded. "When you think about it, this virus is exploiting all our
little weaknesses and desires."
"Chris has gone extra weird..." Lita said.
"Rama-lama-ding-dong." Chris replied. "Flying rabbits! ARGH!"
Rei nodded. "You're overprotective of Serena..." she said to Darien. "Me
and Ami have been...pissy towards each other..."
Ami growled slightly. "Just keep concentrating."
Andrea smiled. "Maury and Lita haven't changed."
They were currently in the middle of a passionate kiss.
Darien nodded. "And Mina's leadership qualities have gone through the
roof."
Mina raised an eyebrow. "Are you questioning my authority?"
Andrea coughed. "And I'm stuck with mentally undressing Darien..." she
stopped as she sensed the looks from the others. "Never mind."
Darien cracked a smile behind her back.
Chris looked up from his computer briefly. "She's on the Tokyo to LA
flight. Give me a second to see where she's going after that."
Maury smiled. "Okay. Now that I know where she'll be, I can use my
destiny powers."
Mina smiled. "That would give us a tactical advantage. Try to see what
she'll do if we bored the same plane."
Maury closed his eyes for a second...then winced suddenly. "Uh...I don't
suggest we do that."
"Why not?" Andrea asked.
"If we do, we'll be forced into a battle with her, and the plane will
explode over the ocean, killing us and everyone else."
Everyone went bug-eyed. "Welllllll, I'm glad we have you on our side, Mo."
Chris smiled. "Oh, she's headed for Edmonton."
"Where?" Lita asked.
Maury answered. "It's the capital of Alberta, over in Canada. Chris and I
always go there. It's not too far from Calgary."
"Why would Serena, a person who's afraid to go across the city without a
detailed map, suddenly want to go across the world?" Rei said.
"Maybe the gel didn't only enhance her sense of non-moon-ness." Chris said,
closing his computer. "What does she love to do more than anything else in the
world?"
Luna snickered. "Oh, that's an easy one. Shopping. Shopping's her life."
Andrea's eyes went wide. "And what does Edmonton have?"
The Scouts were all silent.
The tiller handed Serena her ticket. "Oh my! You're going all the way to
Edmonton? Business or pleasure?" she asked light-heartedly.
Serena smiled. "Both. I'm going shopping! They have the biggest mall in
the world there!"
"Well, you have a good trip." the lady smiled as Serena walked past her
into the gate.
"West Edmonton Mall." Chris said. "She's going to West Ed."
"How are we going to get there?" Rei asked. "If we catch a later plane, we
might lose her. She'll have too much of a head-start."
Mina picked up Luna and Artemis. "We'll travel by cat." she said happily.
Andrea frowned. "Uh?"
"Sailor Teleport." Mina announced proudly, putting down the cats.
Rei smiled, grabbing Chris by the hand. "Come on, get into a circle."
"Oooh, kinky." Chris exclaimed proudly.
They all arranged themselves into a circle, with the two cats standing
nearby. "Good luck, Scouts!"
"Sol Power!" Maury started.
"Mercury Star Power!"
"Venus Star Power!"
"Mars Star Power!"
"Jupiter Star Power!"
"Fibs! Fibs I say!" Chris smiled. "I mean, Fissy Power..."
"Pluto Masked Power!" Andrea finished.
Darien transformed as well. "Let's do it."
Luna cleared her throat. "Sailor..."
Artemis said in sequence: "TELEPORT!!"
The ground around the Scouts began to break-up as a strange upwards force
began acting on the circle. A shaft of multi-coloured light extended upwards
from their bodies.
Just as the light began to reach it's maximum intensity...it was all over.
The Scouts disappeared in a sudden flash, leaving the cats alone on the roof-
top.
A quiet moment set in. Luna sighed. "Wanna go for pizza?"
Chapter 12
Rei slowly opened her eyes as she felt something nudging her. "Uhgh?"
she moaned. "Chris? Is that you?"
She suddenly realized she was floating. In water. "What the hell?" her
eyes shot open.
In the darkness, she saw a strange shape coming toward her. "Mina? Lita?
Chris? Anyone?"
She heard Chris cough off in the distance. "Rei! Oh good, I thought you
might have hit the side!"
"Where is everyone?" Rei asked as the strange shape came closer.
A sudden clicking noise filled the air. Rei gasped. "What was that!?!"
"Don't worry, honey...we just landed a bit off course." Chris said.
Rei recognized the dark shape as it came closer. It was some sort of
dorsal fin. Like on a shark. "Ohmygod! It's coming towards me!"
Something rubbery slid past her leg. "AAAAGHHHHHHH!!" she nearly leapt out
of the water in her attempt to get away.
As she was frantically swimming toward what looked like land, a head popped
up in front of her. "AARGHHH! IT'S GOINNNNAAA EAT MEEEE!" Rei yelled out.
Instead of teeth coming around her body...the head squirted a stream of
warm water at her. It was a dolphin.
Rei opened her eyes slowly. "What the hell is going on!?!"
Chris was now swimming beside her. "Geeze! I hope you didn't set off any
alarms with that scream." he laughed. "We're in the mall."
Rei looked at Chris, who was now visible despite the darkness...then turned
back to the dolphin floating in front of her. It squeaked happily. "What?
Dolphins? In a mall??"
Chris pointed to the moonlight coming from the roof. "We crashed in
through one of the sky-lights. Luckily, it wasn't alarmed, and the Teleport-
bubble broke most of our fall. The rest of the gang is drying off on the pirate
ship."
The dolphin clicked and chirped...then continued to swim away, probably to
sleep.
Rei took a deep breath. "Pirate ships too?"
Chris gave her a hug. "Welcome to MY turf."
The Scouts gathered in one of the older parts of the mall that was being
renovated. There was no security there, and if there were any guards, the
construction would offer more places to hide.
Chris sat in the corner, tapping away at his computer as usual as the rest
of them decided to get some sleep before the mall opened. Everyone, that is,
except Maury. He sat down next to Chris. "What'cha working on?"
Fiss shrugged. "I just got into the airport. Serena's plane will land in
three hours. That gives us at least four hours before she shows up here."
Maury nodded and took a deep breath. "Man...It's good to be back."
Chris smiled. "I know what you mean. I missed not seeing Japanese text on
every sign. Plus, how many other times can you swim with dolphins?" he shut his
computer quietly. "Yup. It's nice to be back."
Maury smiled evilly. "Wanna do some shopping?"
Chris frowned. "Although I'd love to, anything we break into probably has
it's own security system, and it's best we stay undetected for now."
Maury nodded. They were quiet for a long time as the first beams of sun
began coming in from one of the mall's expansive ceiling domes.
West Edmonton Mall was quite a sight. It was it's own tiny city.
Consisting of one massive main hallway that expanded a few blocks of city
street, it then divided up into smaller, yet expansive side halls. Chris had
been hoping they'd land in the Water-Park...which would have been a safer
target, but he forgot where it was located, and somehow, he directed the
group's transport into the Dolphin-Pool.
It was the ultimate mall. Theme park, miniature golf-course, car-
dealerships, hotel, and even it's own police force. If they wanted to find
Serena in it, they'd have to work quickly, and split up. Normally, this wasn't
too big of a deal. However, they also had various adverse viral effects to
contend with. If they didn't go at each other's throats, managed to focus, and
not get lost...they MIGHT be able to pull it off.
Chris shook his head to clear himself of a sleepy daze. He looked around,
and saw the sunlight outside was much brighter. Maury had curled up and fallen
asleep as well. "Well." Chris sighed. "One last adventure before we have to
come back for good."
He stood up in his shadowy hiding spot as a security guard walked past
them. He was headed for one of the entrances. Opening time.
Strike Fiss sighed, holding his sword tightly on his side. "One last
adventure. Let's make it count."
Chapter 13
The Scouts had integrated easily into the early morning crowd, and had
decided to make the most of the morning by relaxing. Because they were all in
public, they'd be forced to concentrate and not let their viruses take over, so
they didn't have to worry too much about that.
Rei had offered to take Chris out for a breakfast. Ami wanted to check out
the electronic stores, so the rest of the Scouts went with her. "We'll meet you
back by the dolphins again in say, three hours." Darien said, checking his
watch.
Chris nodded. "Get a map first. That way, you won't get lost." he said,
pointing to one of the mall's huge directory-map-stations.
Andrea sighed. "Don't worry. I'll take care of Darien." she smiled
happily. "Oh, and the others."
They walked off into the growing crowd.
Rei and Chris sat down at a table in the massive food-court. "Uhg. This
is going to get messy if a fight breaks out. There's too many people."
Fiss looked at his watch, which was now set on Alberta-time. "Well, it is
Saturday, in the middle of Spring Break, too. If we're lucky, we can get Sailor
Moon before the mall closes at six." he checked his watch again. "We'll have a
good six hours, probably more if she hurries over here."
"Why is it so important that we get her before then?" Rei shrugged her
shoulders.
"Once the mall is closed, her attraction is gone. She may go somewhere
else, and we could lose her. Ami's computer can only scan a limited area at a
time, so it's best we do it now and get it over with." Chris said, yawning
slightly to wake up.
Rei smiled, then sighed. "It's too bad we weren't here for pleasure
instead of business."
Chris smiled back. "I know what you mean. I'd love to show you this
city." he paused "It's a lot like some of the quieter areas of Tokyo, but with a
different atmosphere."
"It feels a lot different." Rei said, looking around at the surroundings.
The nearby walkway was laced with a continuous pool of water with a few
fountains spurting up water happily to the mall's background music. "This is
nice."
Chris smiled happily. "Maybe this is just what we needed."
Rei nodded. "You're right. Some time alone..."
Chris shook his head. "No, what I mean is that now, you've been in MY
country. We're even now." he said. "You've been so worried about me and the
others leaving that you forgot that I'm not going to some jungle in the middle
of nowhere and you'll never see me again."
Rei smiled.
"Just remember." Chris said, stretching out his arms. "This time, we're
still on the same planet. That's a lot better than a thousand years ago!"
She nodded. "Well. I'm hungry. What does this dump have to eat?"
Chris frowned a mock-frown. "Ah! Dump? I'll have you know this place has
the best fried Albino-Tarantula Spleens in the world!"
Rei sighed. "Chris...remember to concentrate. The virus is taking over
your mind again."
Chris shook it off. "Oh, sorry." he smiled. "I can get us some pizza if
you want?"
Maury grabbed Andrea's shirt sleeve, pulling her away from a shop window.
"Come on, Hooze..." he sighed.
Andrea was entranced with the bridal-shop. There was a sale on tuxedos.
Therefore, her subconscious attraction to sharp-dressed-men took over and she
was literally drooling over herself. In the window were four manikins with
snazzy tuxes on. "Can I stay for a little while??" she pleaded. "You guys can
go on ahead!"
Darien sighed to himself. "I've created a monster."
"Try to concentrate, Andrea...PLEEEZE!?!" Mina sighed. "We have to keep
focused and find all the good battle areas in the mall."
Ami had taken out her little data-computer. "There are a number of large
areas in the mall. Theoretically, the ice-rink or the water-park would be ideal
battle grounds. Minimal civilian casualties if something goes wrong."
"You WOULD think in terms of death, little miss maniac." Maury growled at
Ami. "Unless you have some plan to sabotage this mission, we'll be able to
capture Sailor Moon and be home in time for lunch."
Ami frowned. "Sabotage? If anything, we'll have to worry about you
jumping on Lita at a key moment in the battle."
Lita giggled to herself.
Maury frowned. "I happen to have more control than YOU do, bitch."
Mina growled. "You two SHUT-UP!"
They were quiet.
Mina nodded. "Okay. Just concentrate, and everything will go fine."
"And WHO made YOU boss?" Ami 'suggested'.
"Uh?" Mina replied.
Maury nodded. "Hey, yeah...how come YOU'RE the one giving orders? I
thought this was a team effort."
"Well, this isn't much of a team with you trying to undress Lita every five
and a half minutes." Mina said quickly.
Lita frowned. With her face lowered, she looked VERY evil. "Are you
saying my boyfriend can't control himself?" she grumbled.
"Yeah!" Maury agreed.
Ami and Mina nodded. "Yeah!" they both said.
"At least I'm attracted to a GOOD looking guy!" Ami said smugly towards
Lita.
Maury growled. Lita growled louder. She took a sudden step towards Ami,
picking her up by her collar and raising her a good THREE FEET off the ground.
"I suggest you shut the FUCK up before I lose my concentration and kick the
shit outta you."
Ami replied by sticking out her tongue.
Andrea joined in. "And if you're so hung up on MY brother, than why are
you insulting his best friend?"
Mina cleared her throat. "If you all don't mind...we DOOOOO have work to
do."
Darien sighed. "This is going to be a barrel of laughs...I can tell that
right now."
Lita put down Ami and walked over to Mina. "You know something, Mina, I
just realized what a power-hungry little bitch you really are."
Mina's brow lowered and she stood on her tip-toes to appear taller.
"Whatever *I* am, it's gotta be better than YOU, you brainless little slut."
Maury pushed Mina back. "Oh, so now YOU'RE insulting my Lita. I'm just
going to have to kick ALL your fuckin' asses now!"
"Oh, yes...barrels and BARRELS of laughs..." Darien coughed loudly.
Everyone turned to him.
Darien smiled. "Okay. Now that we're all paying attention, I suggest we
find Chris and Rei. Serena will be coming here in less than an hour now, and
we'll have to split up if we're ever going to cover all the exits."
The Scouts all nodded. "Sorry." Mina sighed. "This virus is really
getting to me."
They all exchanged apologies.
Even without the virus, it was a hell of a task to track down Sailor Moon
in such a huge area. WITH the virus, it was going to be next to impossible.
Chapter 14
Serena tipped the driver and closed the door to the cab. "Thank you!" she
beamed.
The cab left her in front of West Edmonton Mall's main entrance. She
looked at her watch. "Mmm, lots of time to shop...plus, I can always come back
tomorrow!!" she giggled, opening the door and taking a big whiff of the mall's
air. "Oooh! I love the smell of commerce in the morning!"
Suddenly, a small, nearby girl gasped, pointed at Serena, and yelled:
"MOOOOOM! It's SAILOR MOOOOOON!!"
Serena gasped.
"Honey..." the child's mother sighed. "That's not Sailor Moon. Stop
bugging the nice young girl."
Serena smiled and kept walking as the child kept a disbelieving eye on her.
"Maybe I should get a new hair style first. Sailor Moon is now dead, and so is
her old hairstyle!" she reasoned.
Deep down, all Serena ever wanted was to be a normal, ditzy girl. Sure,
she had times when Sailor Moon was her passion, and her life revolved around
fighting evil, but she was never into it one hundred percent like the others.
Now, she was living her dream. She had left all that was Sailor Moon behind
her, and was willing to start a new life. Luckily, as insurance that the
others wouldn't try to get her back, she kept her crystal as always. They'd
have to kill her before she'd ever fight evil again.
"Sailor Moon is now retired." she said quietly, walking into a hair salon.
Mina lined up all the Scouts and paired them off into teams. "Okay, now,
we split up into our groups, and start covering all the exits. Don't forget to
check the surrounding stores. She may already be inside."
By splitting up, they minimized the virus's effects. For example, Maury
and Chris were teamed up, instead with Lita and Rei, just so they weren't
distracted. Lita and Rei formed the next team. Then, Andrea ganged up with
Mina, and Darien was assigned the task of making sure Ami didn't flip-out again.
"Let's go!" Chris said to Maury.
Andrea nodded. "Okay, concentrate on the lower-level for now. If she took
a cab from the airport, it's most likely she's not on the top floor yet. The
cabs only go to the front doors."
"Okay," Mina said. "We'll take the main front doors. You guys split up
and meet back at the skating rink in half an-hour of we don't see her."
Everyone nodded and ran in opposite directions.
An hour later, Serena was walking down the hallway with a bag under her
arm, full of comics. "Ah! This is the life!" she exclaimed, running her hands
through her new hair style. She had her hair tied back, and it was now tinted
instead of straight blonde.
Chris and Maury rounded the corner. Serena almost froze. "Oh shit...how
did they find me?" she murmured to herself.
Despite the fact they were now walking towards her, they didn't seem to
recognize her without her meatballs.
Serena smiled to herself and kept walking in a casual manner. "I bet they
walk right past me!" she said to herself, already planning the next store to
hit.
Chris sighed as they passed Serena. "Maury, how the hell are we going to
find her?"
Maury shrugged. "I don't know, but we better find her quick. I promised
to take Lita to the water-park." he smiled. "They have nice secluded hot-tubs,
and I'm sure nobody would mind If we..."
"No, honey. That's not Sailor Moon." a woman said. "See? She even has
different hair."
Chris and Maury whipped their heads around simultaneously. They turned to
the woman who said it, then to the direction where her daughter was pointing. A
blonde teenaged girl was checking out a nearby shoe-store.
"There was a farmer who had a dog, and..."
"BINGO was his name-o." Maury nodded with a grin.
"We can transform. There's no security cameras for another hundred
metres." Chris said quickly. "I disabled a few of them with my computer this
morning."
"In public?" Maury yelled under his breath. "There's gotta be forty people
who will see us!"
Chris nodded. "And do we KNOW any of them?" he smiled. "Who cares?
They're all strangers, and won't even know what's going on until we're half
transformed. Come on. Maybe you and Lita will get to take that little
excursion after all."
That got Maury's attention. "Okay! Let's get the bitch!" he said quite
loudly.
Unfortunately, that also got Serena's attention. She turned around at the
sound of Maury's voice, and saw that they were looking directly at her. "No!"
she said simply.
Maury and Chris nodded at each other and began walking towards her.
"Serena..." Chris said in a calm voice. "Why don't we go outside for a second.
All we want to do is talk." he paused. "All we need is your help."
Serena backed up a few steps. "Stay back! I'm not going back with you!"
Maury held out his hands. "Come on! The others are waiting. All we want
is to go home."
"RAPE!" Serena yelled, taking off down the tiled hallway at max speed.
The forty or so bystanders all looked at Chris and Maury, who appeared to
be harassing Serena. Chris sighed. "Oh oh..."
Ten of the meanest looking people began advancing on them, mumbling "You
perverts!" and "Leave the young girl alone!" and "I'm going to kick your ass!"
"Oh oh is right." Maury agreed. "SOL POWER!" he yelled, causing a bright
shaft of sunlight to shoot in from a sky-light above.
As Maury transformed, Chris took out his disk. "SATURN POWER!" he yelled,
and began transforming also.
The crowd started to scream and run away from the glowing teenagers.
Serena looked back to see Maury already transformed and running after her.
"Oh YEAH!?!" she growled. "MOON CRYSTAL POWER!"
Sailor Moon appeared out of the flashy special effects, complete with her
normal hair-style. Chris and Maury continued to run at her, unfazed. "You
wanna make this hard on yourself, go right ahead." Chris yelled.
"Protecting the world is more important that a stupid shopping spree!"
Maury added, taking out three Sol Stars and tossing them at Sailor Moon.
"Hey!!" she yelled, ducking past the Stars, and letting them hit the
ground. The explosion produced a small crater. "You wanna play rough? Fine!"
she took off her tiara. "Moon Tiara ACTION!"
Chris realized that she had used it as a distraction. She had aimed it at
a small girl three metres away. "Shit!" he jumped, pushing the girl away at the
last second.
The girl was then rescued by her terrified mother. Chris looked up to
Maury. "Get her! She's aiming at PEOPLE!!"
Maury was still running after Sailor Moon. "SOL FLARE!" he yelled. From
his outstretched hands, a glowing wisp of energy formed into something that did
indeed look like a solar flare. The loop of energy shot outwards like a whip,
and smacked into Sailor Moon's back.
Sailor Moon tripped, and landed face-first on the cold tile walk-way. The
back of her suit was charred, and a small patch was bleeding underneath.
Despite her injuries, Serena got up almost as quickly as she fell and was again
running.
Chris, still on the ground from saving that kid, realized that he could
circle around and trap her in a nice big open space near the food-court. He got
up and started running. "Attention Christmas shoppers!" he yelled out loud.
"We're SLASHING prices! Everything must GO!" he cackled, pulling out his sword.
The weapon had the desired effect, and people began running for their
lives. Less civilians meant less casualties if a battle erupted, and protecting
others was a Scout's number one priority. That, and destroying the flying
angel-bunnies...but Fiss was pretty sure that was the virus talking.
Rei and Lita were walking down the main walkway. From their vantage point,
they could see halfway down the mall's length. It was getting crowded, though,
and picking out Serena wouldn't be as easy as they hoped. "Even with meatballs,
she'll blend in pretty good." sighed Lita.
Rei nodded. "I hope Chris and Maury are having better luck than we are."
Lita smiled. "You know, I've been thinking. Maybe you can get Grandpa to
let you have a year off or something. Then, you and I could maybe come over
here with our boys."
Rei took a thoughtful pause. "Do you think they'd mind? I mean, maybe
they're looking forward to some time to themselves. You saw how happy they were
to be back in their home country again."
Lita shrugged. "Well, I know it's only an idea, but you gotta admit that
it would be fun!"
Sadly, Rei nodded. "Yeah...but the Scouts? I mean, we almost lost Ami to
that educational 'study-abroad' thing she was going on. What do you think would
happen if TWO Scouts leave?"
"I see your point." Lita sighed. They sat down on a bench that was in the
middle of the main walk-way. "And, if we leave, then the others might as well."
Rei took a deep breath. "I guess saving the world is more important than
our love-lives, eh?"
Lita sighed as well. They were both quiet for a long time. "Man," Lita
said finally "this IS a big mall."
Rei smiled. "Yup."
While Lita was taking in the scenery, something caught her eye. "Wait a
second...isn't that Maury?" she pointed to a nearby television set in a store's
window.
Rei glanced to where she was pointing. "He's transformed! Where's that
image from?"
They both jumped up and ran over to the "store" they saw the image on. It
was actually the mall's security office! Inside, three officially-dressed young
men were suiting up with pepper spray, clubs and walkie-talkies, obviously about
to go and confront the mayhem being caused by Sailor Moon and the two Princes.
An older woman was on the telephone, probably calling for back-up. Lita glanced
under the monitor that was displaying the image. There was a row of five T.V.,
and they all had the location of the current image on them. "They're by the
food court! Come on!" she yelled, almost grabbing Rei.
Rei shook her head. "No. You go ahead. If they move before you get
there, I can watch the action from here. Maybe we can set up an ambush if we
know where she's headed."
Lita nodded and ran off, already pulling out her Star Wand.
Rei took out her controller. "Mina! Ami!" she called to the remaining
parties. "This is Rei. I'm at the security booth. Get here quick! We found
Sailor Moon!"
"On our way!" Mina said.
"Coming!" Ami replied.
Chapter 15
Maury hadn't given up, despite Sailor Moon's speed advantage. Being
relatively new to the Sailor Scouts, Maury didn't have the benefit of two years
running away from monsters that Serena had. To slow her down enough, Maury had
to use his trusty Sol Stars.
"SOL!" he yelled, tossing another volley at her. Maury looked back
briefly. "Damn! Where's Chris!"
Serena ducked under the latest attack, and kept running as fast as her legs
would carry her. "You're too slowwwww!" she said, turning around briefly and
sticking out her tongue.
When she turned back around, though, she saw a rack of suits speeding in
front of her path. Even with her amazing dodging ability, Sailor Moon fell
victim to momentum, and ploughed into the assortment of men's fall clothing.
Chris was standing where the rack had been a second earlier. "He may be
slow, but he's not alone."
Maury caught up and nodded his thanks. Serena rolled onto her back
painfully. When Chris pushed the rack into her, it was the perfect height to
smash into her stomach. She lay back, winded. "No!" she said weakly.
"Yes!" Chris countered happily. "Now, are you goinna help us, or do we have
to kick your ass again?" He paused. "By the way...your head looks like a
potato."
Serena looked desperately around her for some way to escape. "I do NOT
look like a potato!"
Maury shrugged. "Mmm, she's right. More like a lemon."
Chris nodded. "Or maybe one of those..."
Sailor Moon suddenly leapt at Chris, toppling him over. As Maury realized
she was trying to escape, he reached into his coat for a throwing star.
"Stop!!"
Serena was now picking up speed. However, she was headed for a dead-end.
Maury didn't bother running. Chris got up. "What are you doing!"
"She's trapped." Maury said.
"No! What if she..."
Sailor Moon jumped. One of the advantages of being a Sailor Scout was
having access to a few handy super-powers. One of Sailor Moon's was jumping.
She landed on the SECOND FLOOR of the mall. The "dead-end" she was headed for
was also a hole between floors. Chris and Maury knew they were there, but never
gave it much thought.
Now, Serena was on the top level, and there was nothing they could do but
run for the nearest escalator. "That turd burglar is going to die." Chris
growled as they dodged all the shoppers.
Mina and Andrea were the first to show up. They walked up to Rei and
peered into the security booth's window. "Ah!" Mina said. "Perfect! Now we
can plan our next move!"
"Where's Chris?" Andrea asked.
Rei shrugged. "They ran out of the screen. The security people are trying
to find them again."
The two technicians left in the booth were frantically trying to find
Sailor Moon on their security cameras.
Suddenly, the mall's intercom crackled to life. "Attention shoppers.
Attention shoppers. We are experiencing a minor emergency. At your earliest
convenience, try and make your way out one of the exits. Police will be waiting
to direct you from there. Remember, there is no immediate danger. Please leave
in an orderly fashion. Thank you."
Strange enough, there was no panic. A few people jogged out a nearby exit,
but most of the shoppers just hurried on their way as usual. Andrea smiled.
"Right on. Now we can kick Sailor Moon's ass in privacy!"
Ami and Darien came running towards them. "Did you hear the announcement?"
Darien asked.
They all nodded. "We should transform now so they don't think we're
shoppers and kick us out." Mina said.
Chris and Maury were far behind now, and there was little chance of
cornering or ambushing her now. Chris was getting tired. "Man! What is she?
A track star or something?"
Maury was even worse, having been chasing after her from the very
beginning. "You...haffta...use...your...swords!" he huffed and puffed.
Fiss looked at his buddy. "Are you crazy? That could kill her! The last
thing we need now is a dead Sailor Moon on our hands."
"We got to do something!" Maury gasped, finally stopping. He keeled over
onto a bench, exhausted. "There's an exit where she's running. If she leaves
the mall, we're fucked. Even WE don't know this city well enough to play hide-
n-seek in it."
Chris nodded, also stopping. "Okay. Good point." he paused to catch his
breath, then pulled out his second sword. "Looks like it's party time!" he
yelled, bringing the two blades together in an 'X'. The air around them began
to crackle with energy. "I call upon all kiwis on earth! Give me your power!"
Chris smiled. "Yeah!" he yelled, swinging his swords around, then forward,
unleashing his attack.
The blue disk shot down the hallway at the speed of sound. Serena, who was
still heading for the exit, felt the air change...almost like it does just
before it rains. The tingling of energy at the back of her neck alerted her
that it was Chris' attack. "Nooo!" she yelled, ducking down.
By the time she did this, though, the energy disk had already hit. It
didn't hit Sailor Moon, though. The disk had gained altitude and hit the roof
above her, causing a shower of debris to pile on top of her. Chris and Maury
stood eighty metres away. Maury took a double take. "Holy shit! Good aim!"
Chris shrugged, putting away his second sword. "I wouldn't say that." he
paused. "I was aiming for her back."
Maury shrugged. "Whatever works!"
The two advanced quickly on the fallen Sailor Moon...not even bothering to
notice one of the security cameras was zooming in on them.
"Okay...we found them." Mina said. "Andrea. You lead the way to that
section of the mall. Rei, you stay here and help out with coordinating
everything. Try and get word out to Lita that we know where they are. She's
probably still wandering around."
Andrea nodded. "Okay. Come on. Follow me. We're going to have to hurry.
That part of the mall is a block and a half away."
Darien sighed. "This isn't a mall. It's a freakin' city."
Rei sighed as they all ran off. She sat at on a nearby bench, watching the
security screens inside the booth. She lifted her wrist to her mouth. "Hey,
Jupiter." she said into her communicator.
"Yeah? Where IS everyone!" Lita replied.
"Go over to the skating rink. Chris and Maury found Serena, and we're all
going to meet somewhere near there." Rei said, looking at the monitors, then at
her little map. "Just remember, she might go mental and overpower our boys.
I'm going to stay here in case we have to plot an ambush or something."
"No prob. Jupiter out."
Serena woke up as she felt her feet hit something. "Uh?" she said with a
start. She looked around. Chris was on one side of her. Maury was on the
other. They were dragging her by the arms toward an escalator.
Chris looked down at her. "Soooo," he said, looking over his sunglasses.
"You just HAD to pick the 'hard way', didn't you?"
Maury nodded. "How come nobody EVER picks the 'easy way?'"
"I don't know. But it's annoying." Chris smiled. "By the way, Serena,
you're heavy. Ever think of going on a diet or something?"
Maury smiled. "She's not heavy. You're just a wussy."
"Oh yeah..." Chris smiled back.
Serena sighed. "I don't want to be Sailor Moon anymore, can't you see
that? Why can't you just leave me alone!?!"
Maury looked down at her as they helped her into an elevator. "Don't
worry. One last favour, and we'll let you be. If you want to be a go-go-dancing
vampire slut in New Mexico, we won't care. And we won't stop you."
"Ha!" Serena laughed suddenly. "Sure. Until the next Negaverse monster
attacks. Then you'll come running, asking me for 'one last favour.'"
Chris sighed, pressing the 'down' button. "Yup. She picked the 'hard
way.'"
Rei saw the three get into the elevator. It lead right next to the ice
rink. "Right on. Maybe now we can all go home." she sighed.
Suddenly, a strange wave of energy passed over her. It was her "evil
sense". She jumped up, pulling out a scroll. "Who's there!?!"
Ami turned the corner. "Dang. I guess there's no surprising the psycho-
chick, is there?"
Rei frowned. She hated being called 'psycho' or 'mental' or anything else
where here talents were the subject of a joke. "What did you call me?"
Ami just smiled. "You've been lucky so far...but now, it's just you and
me. Chris and Lita and the others can't help you now."
"I won't need their help." Rei said, feeling the last thread of control
over her virus snap. "You want a duel, then let's get it over with."
Ami nodded thoughtfully. "Okay...but on my terms." she smiled.
"Obviously, you have the advantage in powers, so it's only fair that I choose
the place of the duel."
Rei fell into Ami's ego-stroking. "I suppose. After all, I wouldn't want
to kick your ass TOO badly."
Ami pointed down the hallway. "Down there, in the water-park. Lots of
open space, lots of room to kick my ass in. What do you say?"
Rei smiled. "Who's going to notify your next of kin?"
Chapter 16
Chris and Andrea's mom, Sandra, had just finished doing the dishes and
decided to see what was on television. She turned it on, just as a special news
announcement started. At the bottom of the screen it said: Live in West
Edmonton.
She checked the channel number. It was CNN. "What's so important in
Edmonton that CNN would be there?" she wondered aloud. She sat back in her
chair and turned up the volume slightly.
A spunky female reported had already started talking. "...no further
weapon fire or major activity from inside, but the RCMP are keeping the crowd
back away from the mall in case anything further happens."
The scene switched to a news-desk. In the top-right corner, a small
picture of West Edmonton Mall. "Do the police think this is in some way related
to the recent disaster in Japan involving these so-called 'Sailor Scouts' and
the aliens?"
"No. The police don't think the aliens are involved, and it appears that
the enemy in this case could be one of the Sailor Scouts themselves. We are
still not sure which one, but I've just talked to a few eye-witnesses, and it is
one of the female members." the reporter replied.
"What the...?" Sandra said. "Sailor Scouts?" Chris had told her about
them one day when he called from Japan.
The view returned to the news-desk. "To re-cap on the events at hand, West
Edmonton Mall has apparently been turned into the battle-ground for a Sailor
Scout civil war. The Sailor Scouts, who have been nothing but rumours until a
month ago, have so far operated solely in Japan. We can only guess why they've
ended up here, and what their motives are."
The view switched to a previous interview with an RCMP officer. "We've
pulled back all our forces and evacuated the mall, however, we are ready to take
action against them if they become a threat to the surrounding area or the City
of Edmonton."
"Aren't you afraid that the situation could escalate beyond your control?"
the reporter asked.
The officer cleared his throat. "We are taking every precaution short of
going inside. If it escalates beyond our control, then I doubt we'd have much
of a chance either way. They are 'super-heroes', after all." he smiled.
"Why haven't you gone inside?"
"Well, we feel this is a...I feel kinda silly saying this, but...'super-
hero matter', and we should let them sort it out for themselves. Not only that
but we owe these young people a great debt for destroying the aliens who killed
a hundred and twenty fellow law-enforcement officers over in Japan. Surely, if
they didn't succeed, we would probably be fighting instead."
"I don't believe this..." Sandra said to herself.
"I just got word that we have access to some of the mall's security tapes."
the guy at the news-desk said proudly. "We'll be able to take a look at what
happened just a few minutes ago."
Rei stood on the artificial beach of the wave-pool, keeping a careful eye
on Ami, who was farther down the same 'beach'. "Well? What are you waiting
for?" she said happily.
Ami smiled. It was unlike her normal, calm smile. It was more like the
smile on a Negaverse Monster. "I'm waiting for you to make the first move."
Rei shrugged. "Sure. Why not?" she said nonchalantly. Even before she
uttered the last syllable, her hand whipped around her body, tossing three
scrolls at Ami.
Ami lifted up her hand in front of her. A jet of water flew across the
scroll's path, knocking them out of the sky. Her smile widened as she saw Rei's
face. Rei realized that the gust of water came from the pool. Ami could
control water. And they were surrounded by it.
"Shit..." Rei said simply, taking a defensive stance.
The sound of running water around her seemed to giggle with Ami. "You're
on MY turf now..."
Rei glanced around her quickly, trying to think of an escape.
"I can't control water as well as that Sailor Neptune girl, but I can
certainly control it enough to kick your butt." Ami taunted. "And I think it's
time I proved my point."
Rei gasped as she saw a patch of the water rise up and form an ice crystal.
It launched forward at lightning speeds, barely giving Rei enough time to dodge.
It shattered harmlessly into a potted palm tree nearby. Rei growled. "You
wanna rock? Fine. Let's rock." she pointed her finger at Ami. "Fire!"
A short blast of fire launched at Ami, but she dodged it easily. "Is that
the best you can do?" she laughed. "Mercury!" she yelled, causing an
overhanging water-pipe to burst. A powerful jet of water fell on Rei,
flattening her to the ground.
"MARS FIRE IGNITE!" Rei yelled, struggling to hold her hands up against the
gallons of crushing water hitting her.
The bigger fire-ball hit the same pipe, causing a large section to break
free and fall. Ami gasped and leapt out of the way as the pipe came crashing
down exactly where she had been standing. She got up slowly...her smile gone.
Apparently, she'd have to work for her victory after all. "Nice try."
Rei, now free of the water jet, got up, coughing. "Now I'm going to kick
your ass."
Ami smiled. "Look behind you."
Rei's eyes went wide. A huge stream of water smacked her in the back like
a base-ball bat. Rei flew forward, scraping her arms as she landed on the rough
slip-proof cement. "Damn it!" she yelled out in pain.
"It might be a good time for you to run and hide like a little baby." Ami
said, grin returning.
Maury and Chris sat bored, waiting for the others. They were sitting on
opposite sides of Serena, who was wallowing to herself quietly. "So, what's
weirder." Chris said, adjusting his sunglasses. "A duck driving a tractor-
trailer...or a hedgehog singing 'bohemian rhapsody'?"
Maury shrugged. "I don't know...at first, the hedgehog...but once I
visualize that duck...Mmm, I'd say it's close."
"Mmm, yeah...I'd say...WHAT THE HELL???" Chris stood up suddenly.
Mo looked around quickly. "WHAT?"
Chris pointed to the water-park. A large section of it was viable through
a set of large windows. "That's Rei and Ami! They're fighting?!?"
"What are you going to do?" Maury asked.
Chris was already half-way down the hallway. He ran up to the windows,
took out his sword and blasted the glass away with a 'FISS!'
Maury glanced back to Sailor Moon. She was looking up at Maury. "Don't
you try anything." Maury growled. "I'm still here."
Serena smiled. "Who? ME? Me? Try anything? Ha!" She said a bit too
easily.
Maury sat back down with her. "Yeah...ha." he took out a throwing knife
just in case.
Chapter 17
Sandra was still watching when the first blast came. The reporter was
babbling away with one of the RCMP officers when the camera shook and a huge
"whoooof!" filled the air.
"Look up there!" someone said.
A large jet of fire was blasting through the roof of what looked like the
water park. Then, an equally massive stream of water. People began screaming
and running farther away as a fine mist of water began hitting the crowd. "My
god..." Sandra said to herself.
Soon, it was over, though, and the reporter was back on the air. "Sorry
about that folks. It seems as if the activity has returned. We'll try to keep
filming as long as it is safe to do so."
The scene changed back to the desk. "I've just got word that we're ready
to show the security camera clips."
The screen now showed a seemingly normal situation in the mall. People
were milling about, and everything seemed normal. Suddenly, a blonde-haired
girl began running. Two teenaged boys began chasing after her. Somehow, they
looked familiar. Unfortunately, the tape cut off. "Witnesses say, that the two
teenaged boys, and the blonde girl they were chasing are actually Sailor Scouts.
The girl is possibly Sailor Moon herself, the leader of them. The two boys
could be some of the newer members who have joined the team just recently."
The scene changed again. "Now, I've been told that this next clip is quite
spectacular. It involves the same two boys, and Sailor Moon. They now seem to
be in fighting uniforms."
This time, it showed Chris and Maury on the walkway in a panoramic view.
Sandra watched as one of the boys pulled out two swords, and formed a bubble of
light around him. Then, the swords absorbed the light, and concentrated it into
a disk-attack that launched out at the fleeing Sailor Moon.
It hit the roof, and debris began piling on the far-away figure. The
attack must have hit the hallway's power conduits as well, because the security
camera tape faded out. They showed the clip again.
Sandra looked closer. "Oh my god..." the one who pulled out the swords
looked almost exactly like Chris...if not for the sunglasses, she might have
been able to tell right away. However, she was sure when it zoomed up on Maury.
"That's Chris and Maury!?!"
The anchor-man returned. "Wow!" he said in awe. "Did you see that sword
thing?!?" he asked the people around him. "That was amazing!"
Sandra stood up. "No, wait...it can't be them. That's so stupid! They're
in Japan right now..."
The man continued. "Well, from eye witness reports and available data, the
one who did that sword-attack must have been Strike Fiss."
"What?" Sandra gasped, recognizing the name as Chris' nick-name.
"The was actually the first to kill one of the aliens over in Japan.
However, he has only been a conferred presence since a month or so ago."
That was about when Chris went to Japan. And then Andrea got abducted, and
everything started happening. The aliens, the increasingly less frequent phone
calls back home...and Maury too? What about Andrea? Sandra went over to the
phone and dialled Cherri Hill temple. "This is crazy..."
Rei could barely breath. She had gotten the wind knocked out of her
repeatedly, and her chest felt like it was caught in a giant mousetrap. To make
matters worse, her virus wasn't letting her quit and run away. A tiny voice of
reason inside saw this and said. "Oh shit! You gotta run! You'll get killed!"
Unfortunately, the virus said 'fuck you' to that and forced Rei to stay and
fight to the bitter end.
Ami, who had a singed boot, but no major injuries, walked up to Rei. "So,
little miss camp-fire, I guess you couldn't stand up to me after all." she
smiled. "That's okay. I actually expected less of you. I'm impressed that
you're still alive to grovel even now."
Rei grabbed Ami's boot. "If I go, I'm taking you with me." she gasped.
Ami frowned, causing a small wave to hit Rei's hand away from her boot.
"Don't touch me, bitch. Besides, anything you throw at me now could barely
roast a marshmallow. You're out of lighter-fluid."
Rei growled, trying to get to her feet, but only managing to get to one
knee.
Ami sighed. "Fine. Don't grovel. Time to end this."
"You tell fibs." Chris said, walking toward Ami, sword extended.
Ami looked like a little kid with her hand caught in the cookie jar.
"Chris? Oh! Hi! We were just having a little girl-to-girl chat."
Chris pointed his sword at Ami. "Can't you two control yourselves for a
few freakin hours? All you have to do is concentrate, and the virus doesn't do
shit!"
Ami began backing up as she realized Chris wasn't going to stop advancing
with his sword pointed at her. "All this virus has done is made me love you
more, Chris. And it's also made me a lot stronger." she smiled. "And I bet you
like it, too."
Chris put down his sword. "You really are full of shit, aren't you?" he
sighed, then turned to Rei. "Okay...just to show you two how easy it is to
control this virus, I WON'T kill Ami. Now let's get the hell out of here."
He put away his sword and helped Rei to her feet. "Thanks." she said
simply, getting some strength back.
Chris smiled. "Come on. You two can return to beating up Serena instead
of each other."
Ami's sanity came back in a tidal wave. "Oh my..." she said quietly,
looking around her at the broken pipes and debris.
Chris turned to her. "Come on, Ami. You too. It's this fucking
virus...it's not your fault. Right Rei?"
Rei growled slightly. Chris frowned at her. "Okay, okay...Friends, Ami?"
she said, extending her hand cautiously.
Ami smiled briefly, shaking Rei's hand. "Friends. As always."
Chris smiled. "Wow! Now, let's get out of here before I puke! This is
too sappy."
The three of them walked out through the hole Chris had made through the
glass windows. Rei smiled. "I still would have kicked your ass." she
snickered.
Ami raised an eyebrow. "Ha!"
Fiss shot them both a look, and they stopped right there.
The fireworks from the water-park had stopped. Maury sat impatiently,
waiting for the others to show up. "Where the hell is everyone?"
Serena sighed loudly.
Maury stood up and began looking down the hallway.
Serena slowly reached for her tiara. Maury was much too busy to notice
this subtle movement, and kept peering down the hallway. If she killed him,
then Lita would most certainly want revenge. Plus everyone seemed to be acting
strangely lately, and a homicidal Jupiter was the last thing she wanted. She
quietly plucked her tiara off her forehead, causing it to begin to
spin. "Moon Tiara ACTION!" she yelled, tossing it at Maury's feet.
He was caught completely off guard, and flew head-over-heels as the tiara
caused the floor around him to explode.
Sailor Moon had retrieved her tiara and was off down the hallway before
Maury even knew what hit him. "What the f..." he coughed, picking himself off
the ground.
Looking behind him, he saw Sailor Moon running away. "Oh shit."
Suddenly, Rei, Chris and Ami came running past him. Rei yelled back at
Maury. "Well? You coming?"
Maury took a deep breath, and began running as well. He caught up to
Chris. "Hi! I see the girls cleared up their little dispute?"
Ami and Rei nodded.
"Cool. Now we can get down to business." Maury said happily.
Chris pulled out his sword. "I don't care anymore what happens to me.
However, I'm going to make sure Sailor Moon never runs again!" he said. "I HATE
running! Grr!" he 'Grred'.
Rei nodded. "I'll slow her down." she pulled out an ofuda scroll. "Mars
Firebird...STRIKE!"
She combined her fire-attack with the paper, causing it to form the
familiar bird-shape. It screeched toward Serena.
Serena looked behind her and gasped, diving into a clothing store before it
could hit her. "Rei! You meanie!" she called back as she began running again.
Chris noticed the route. "She's headed for the ice-rink! Isn't that where
the others are?"
Rei nodded. "Yes! Come on! If we catch up to her in time, we can make
sure she can't escape back this way!"
"There's four hallways that intersect the rink. Let's hope they're ready
for us..." Maury said.
Serena's virus had given her an overwhelming urge to run, so she was far
from being tired. "If I have to, I'll run all the way back to Tokyo, but
they're NOT going to catch me!" she reassured herself.
"VENUS CRESCENT BEEEEEAM!" A shaft of light smacked the ground less than a
metre in front of Serena.
Serena skidded to a halt using her amazing dodging skills. "No!" she
looked up at the beam's origin. Sailor Venus leapt down from the second story
to in front of Sailor Moon.
"That's far enough." Venus commanded.
At her cue, Tuxedo Mask, Sailor Hooze and Sailor Jupiter jumped down from
the second story as well, each blocking off Sailor Moon's escape options. A
second later, Mars, Mercury, Fiss and Destiny were also on the scene, blocking
off her from the rear. Serena looked frightened. "Damn you!" she yelled,
jumping onto the ice-surface.
The others all jumped on as well, forming a circle around her. Darien
motioned to everyone to stay back. "Serena?" he asked softly. "My darling?"
Serena growled at him. "This is all YOUR fault! I never would have
enjoyed being Sailor Moon in the first place without Tuxedo Mask there! If you
never existed, I might have had a chance at a normal life!"
Darien stepped back. "I don't think she's in a co-operative mood."
Rei tried next. "Hey, Meatball head...all we need from you is..."
"DON'T CALL ME MEATBALL HEAD! ARRRGHHH!" Serena flipped, bringing out
her Moon Sceptre. "I *HATE* BEING CALLED THAT STUPID FUCKING NAME!" she
screamed, pointing the weapon at Rei's head.
Rei gasped and jumped out of the way as a beam of concentrated energy shot
out from the wand, destroying a large section of the staking rink's wall.
The Scouts all gasped, taking steps back. Serena pointed the staff around
at them all. "AH!" she laughed loudly. "NOW who's on the offensive!"
"She's gone wacky!" Chris said, pulling out his sword and aiming it at her
in defence.
"That's right, Strike Fiss..." Serena giggled madly. "I'm wacky. I'm
FUCKING crazy." she giggled some more. "And if you all don't BACK OFF, I'll
kill each and EVERY one of you right NOW!"
"Serena." Mina said. "You're not thinking clearly."
Serena sneered and brought her sceptre around at Mina. "Why can't YOU be
leader? HUH?" she demanded.
Mina frowned. "I'd love to...but that's just not the way things are." she
growled. "You're Sailor Moon. Our leader."
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Serena yelled, shooting once more.
The beam hit Mina in the hair, causing a small chunk of it to vaporize.
Venus looked at her hair, taking the damaged part in her hand. She looked from
the hair to Sailor Moon. "Bitch!"
"Oh oh..." Lita gasped. "She's always been proud of her hair..."
Mina pointed her finger at Sailor Moon. "DON'T FUCK WITH THE HAIR!" she
shot out another Crescent Beam at Sailor Moon, who barely dodged in time from it
hitting her left eye.
Darien took the opportunity and jumped on top of Serena before she could
fire her weapon at anyone. "Serena! SNAP OUT OF IT!" he begged.
She gasped, unable to move. "Go away! Everyone! GO AWAY!" she yelled.
Darien continued to hold her down. Chris, Maury and Andrea all sighed
simultaneously. Suddenly, they heard shouting. The police had come in after
all. Andrea looked down the hallway. "If we're going to do this, we better do
it soon."
Lita kneeled down to Sailor Moon's face. "Serena...we're infected with
Negaverse Generals!"
The Scouts all blinked at Lita. "Uh?" they all asked.
Lita kept going. "I'm the real Lita! I've managed to get control back of
my body! I must hurry, though. You have to heal us! You know you real friends
would respect your decision to leave. These Negatoads want you to stay, though.
You MUST heal us!" she said dramatically, falling over in a mock faint.
Maury smiled. "That's my girl." he bragged quietly to Chris.
Chris raised an eyebrow. "As long as it works."
Darien let Serena up slowly. Serena got up and looked at them all.
"You're right! You're all Negatoads!" she picked up her sceptre. "Once I get
you all back to normal, I can live a normal life!"
Chris cleared his throat. "No! We need you for our evil plots!" he faked.
Darien took a cue. "Uh, yeah! If you return these bodies back to normal,
then you'll go on to live a boring life! Why would you want to do that??"
Serena walked over to one side of the ice. "My friends would never badger
me like this! I must return them to normal!" she lifted her wand in the air.
"Moon Healing...ACTIVATION!"
A bright white light enveloped the Scouts.
"Hey, Maury." Chris said, just before it hit them.
"What?" Maury answered.
"She said 'moon.'" he laughed stupidly.
Maury frowned and smacked him on the shoulder. "She ALWAYS says Moon!"
"Oh, right...sorry..."
Chapter 18
Rei was the first to wake up. The numbing cold of the ice underneath her
body was the first sensation she felt. Then, she noticed the twenty police
officers standing around her. "Ahh!" she screamed, startled.
The police chief came up to her, offering her a blanket. "Uh, sorry, miss,
uh..."
"Mars." Rei said.
"Uh, yeah. Sorry, miss Mars. We would have moved you off the ice, but we
weren't sure if that was safe to do. You were all unconscious." he said.
Rei looked down to see Chris besides her. "Where's his sword?" she asked
the police officer.
"Oh!" he smiled guiltily. "We were just inspecting it."
Chris woke up at the word "sword." He got up slowly. "What about my
sword?"
A forensics man quickly scuttled up to Chris and handed him his sword.
"Here you go sir."
Chris looked at the police. "I really wish you'd ask before you go around
touching super-hero weapons." He pointed his sword up. "FISS!" the blue
shockwave appeared on cue, confirming that his sword was okay. He sheathed it.
Rei smiled. "Well, you haven't said one word about kiwi fruit, lemon-pie,
or ducks...so I assume we're cured."
Chris nodded happily, then turned to the officer. "Where's Sailor Moon?"
"Uh, she took off just as we came in." the man explained. "Damndest thing.
She just jumped up onto the second floor, then out the sky-light!"
The others were starting to wake up now. Rei sighed. "Well, hopefully
she's still in the city."
Chris nodded. He took a step but stopped as he heard a crunch. "What the
hell?" he looked down at his foot to see a dark brown, dirt-like substance under
him. It was all around them. In fact, each of the Scouts was surrounded by the
stuff. "Mars, is that normal?"
Rei shrugged. "I think so. Maybe it healed us by getting rid of the stuff
from our bodies, and that's the gel once it's inert."
The officer coughed. "Uh, can I get a statement?" he smiled. "A lot of
people want to know why you tore up half of the mall."
Chris shrugged. "We all had the flu?"
Rei smiled. "It's a bit more complicated than that. Sorry, we can't get
into it."
The others were now awake. Maury helped Lita to her feet. "Great idea. I
can't believe she fell for the 'Negatoad' thing, though."
Lita smiled. "Neither can I! Maybe the virus impaired her judgement."
"One thing, though..." Chris said to the police officer. "If you see
Sailor Moon anywhere in Edmonton, put a message on your web-site for us. I'll
be checking every hour or so."
Darien yawned. "I just chuck the roses. These guys handle the computers."
he smiled.
"And what a mighty-fine rose-chucking you do." Chris replied.
They Sailor Scouts gathered in a circle once more. "Let's go home,
Scouts." Mina sighed happily.
The police officers watched in amazement as the Scouts disappeared in a
shaft of light, leaving a circle of cracked ice behind them.
Chapter 19
"Well, at least we didn't land in water this time." Mina sighed, crawling
out of the thorn bush they teleported into.
Chris coughed, causing a large chunk of dirt to fly out of his mouth.
"That's just sick." he said, coughing some more.
Maury helped him to his feet. "Don't worry. I hear dirt contains four
essential vitamins and nutrients!"
"Yes, I'd like a large orange juice and a dirt-muffin. Thank you."
Darien had landed on his feet. "I don't see why we had to come back now.
Serena's still in Edmonton, and she's probably getting worse." he said, trying
to hide his concern. "What if that virus has long term effects as well? What
if it's terminal if it stays in your body long enough?"
Mina nodded. "You know, he's right."
Andrea, feeling a little jealous that Darien was so concerned about Serena,
just walked away.
Chris and Maury saw this. "Uh, we better go see if Hooze is alright."
Chris said with a sigh.
The two walked off after her.
Ami looked over to Darien. "Well, I can still analyze the gel sample, and
we can simulate it's entire life span. Then, we can see if it really is
deadly."
Darien smiled. "Thanks Ami." he looked at his watch. "And as for me..."
he yawned. "I'm going to go home and get some sleep. Gotta be ready for
tomorrow."
They all waved to him as he walked off.
Lita sighed. "Well, can I crash with you tonight, Rei? Darien's right.
If we gotta go back to Edmonton tomorrow, we might as well be rested."
Rei nodded. "Of course." she looked over to Ami. "All of you can stay if
you want."
Ami smiled. "Thanks, but I better go home. I haven't seen my parents in
two days, and I'm sure they might be wondering where I am."
Rei nodded. "I better go see where Grandpa is too." they walked off,
leaving Lita and Mina.
"Well, I'm going to raid the fridge!" Mina said proudly. "You coming?"
Lita nodded. "Maybe I'll cook up a snack or something."
"Andreaaaaaa! Wait up!" Chris yelled, leaping towards her. "Hey!"
"Yeah, hey." Andrea replied dismally.
Fiss was now beside her. "I take it that you aren't too happy right now."
Andrea gave him a mean look.
"I hate to say it, Hoozie," Chris sighed. "But Darien's already taken."
Andrea said nothing.
Chris put his hands in his pockets. He was still in uniform, but it didn't
really matter since his clothes looked semi-casual anyway. "You know, you
shouldn't be rushing into a relationship anyway." he coughed. "Hell, you're
only fourteen. The only reason I've even been going out with Rei is because
we're absolutely sure of it."
Andrea turned to him. "It seems like everyone else has a girlfriend or
boyfriend except me."
Her brother shrugged. "What about Mina? Ami? I don't think your older
sis,
Sailor Pluto even has a boyfriend."
"Well, I don't care. I'm not giving up on Darien." Andrea said, half proud
of the fact.
Chris took a deep breath. "Well, it's really none of my business." he
started.
"But what?" Andrea demanded.
Chris turned and walked away. "That sounds a lot like Ami."
Andrea went wide eyed.
Maury, who had been a few steps behind her, placed his had on her shoulder.
"He's right. You know. You're the youngest Sailor Scout. You should be more
worried about friends and secret crushes than you are about finding true love."
Andrea nodded quietly. "I know...I know..."
Maury smiled then walked off. "But don't worry, you aren't as bad as Ami.
She's nuts."
Hooze rolled her eyes back. "Thanks..."
Mina and Lita walked into the kitchen and started to root around for
something to snack on. Mina giggled. "Mmm, I wonder if Rei's grandpa has any of
those microwavable..."
She opened a cupboard, causing Luna and Artemis to fall out onto the
counter. Mina and Lita leapt back in surprise. Both cats were extremely wide-
eyed, and were blushing. "What the hell?" Mina gasped, looking down at the two.
Artemis smiled guiltily. "Oh, hi."
Luna was also smiling. "Uh, sorry about all this..."
Lita was wide-eyed as well. "You two??? Why were you both in the
cupboard?" she looked inside. "Aw, that's just GROSS!" she sneered.
Mina don't bother to ask what was so gross. "I hate to say it, but you two
love-birds are just under the effects of a virus."
Lita smiled. "But you gotta admit, it's great blackmailing material."
The cats both lowered their ears submissively.
Mina smiled. "Yeah. The OTHER Scouts don't HAVE to know Luna and Artemis
have been doing the horizontal tango."
Artemis frowned. "Oooh, that's cold."
"Well, I guess we should keep them locked up so they don't re-infect us."
Lita sighed.
As Lita walked off to find a cage or something, Luna turned to Artemis.
"You just HAD to pick the cupboard, didn't you? 'Oh, but Luna, it will be
exciting!' you said."
Artemis shrugged. "If we're lucky, we'll be put in the same cage." he
smiled.
Chris' laptop started ringing. "Uh? Shit...Rei! Wake up!" he whispered
at Rei, who had fallen asleep with him.
Rei blinked open her eyes. "Oh, sorry...just a second..."
Chris crawled out of the bed in his housecoat and opened his laptop's
phone software. "Hello?"
"Chris?" his mom came through.
Chris put on the little head-set that came with the computer. "Yeah! Hi
mom!"
A long pause. "So, how's everything going?"
Chris didn't like the sound of that. "Uh, fine? What's up? It's...two in
the afternoon over there! Why are you calling?" his mom usually waited until
after six, when the phone-rates were cheaper.
"Oh, just checking up on you and your sister. How is everyone?"
"Actually, pretty tired. Just finished chores actually." he lied, looking
at the time. It was almost morning.
"That's good to hear." a long pause. "By the way, I have to ask you
something about your chores."
Chris shrugged. "Yeah?"
"Since when do they include shooting out lightning bolts from a pair of
swords?"
"Oh shit..." Chris said accidentally. His mind went into a panic. "Uh..."
"Don't give me any top-secret shit or anything...I want to know what you
and Maury were doing in Edmonton, fighting Sailor Moon with the Sailor Scouts!"
Rei looked over at Chris. "What's going on?"
Chris typed in "SHE KNOWS" on the screen and showed it to Rei. Rei's eyes
went wide.
"Mom, before you jump to any conclusions, we're the good-guys." Chris said
quickly. "And it's not my fault. I sort of came on the job by accident."
"Who else?" Sandra demanded.
Chris sighed. "All three of us. I guess us super-heroes stick together."
he tried to smile.
"You're the 'Strike Fiss' guy?" she asked.
"Yes, the cats didn't really have a name for me, so I got to pick my own.
Maury is Prince Destiny, and Andrea is Sailor Hooze." Chris said quietly.
His mom was quiet for a long time. "This is unbelievable." she paused
again. "Wait a second. The news said you killed the first alien. YOU said you
were a safe distance away!"
Chris groaned inwardly. "I lied. Sorry."
"You mean you're running around with swords, killing aliens????"
"It's the job, mom...we have to. You know, it's the old 'protect the
Earth' thing?" Chris said, knowing his mom would only get worse.
"Why didn't you tell me?" his mom sighed.
Chris thought a second. "We were going to...but if we told you earlier,
you would have just gotten all scared and stuff. The others have kept their
secrets so far, and we thought we could as well."
"This is unbelievable."
"I know you won't understand this, but we have to help protect the Earth.
We found out we may be getting more trouble in the future."
A long pause.
Then, a small laugh. "So, are you having fun chasing all the girls in
skirts?"
Chris raised an eyebrow. "One thing at a time, mom. Anyway, we were
infected by a virus. Me and the others are okay now, except for Sailor Moon and
our talking cats. Once we straighten out this mess, I'll talk to you. Okay?"
"Talking cats??"
"Okay?" Chris repeated. "We'll fill you in when we get back."
"Yeah, I guess. But be careful." his mom said goodbye and the crisis was
over.
Rei smiled. "Well, that wasn't so bad."
Chris sat back against the wall. "Yeah, YOU don't have to explain how I
sliced off the upper half of a super-being alien sent here by the Watchers to
destroy a guy who chucks super-charged roses from some unknown area inside his
jacket."
Chapter 20
Everyone gathered in their casual clothes, in the fire-reading room. They
were all completely lost. The two cats now needed to be kept apart via bird
cages to make sure Artemis wouldn't mount Luna whenever they were free of things
to do, or even when they were busy.
That was a bad sign this virus wasn't about to stop increasing it's effects
by the hour. Mina frowned. "One of these days, I'm getting Artemis fixed."
All the males in the group winced, especially Artemis, who instantly
stopped trying to gnaw through the cage's lock.
Mina coughed. "Okay, first of all, Ami, what were the results from your
test of the virus."
Ami nodded, back to her professional self. "Okay, first, the virus will
continue to escalate her strange behaviour until she literally goes crazy." she
said, looking off of her little computer.
Chris sighed. "I guess 'wacky' doesn't count, does it?"
Lita raised an eyebrow. "If she was crazy, I don't think we'd be here to
talk about it."
Darien nodded. "Good point. She DOES have the Silver Crystal."
"Okay, okay..." Maury sighed. "What exactly is this Silver Crystal
anyway?"
The Scouts all looked at him like he had turned into a large kiwi-fruit.
"Hey! I'm new here!" Maury smiled. "You guys STILL haven't told me what it
can do."
Ami looked at her computer. "Well, from the few times I've scanned it, it
holds more than enough energy to level a large city."
"Plus, it's not just random. It can be focused, and could do even more
damage. We're not too sure." Lita said.
Rei smiled. "All we know is that the Negaverse has tried to get their
hands on it for over a millennia."
Chris took out his own computer. "Well, there are a dozen hotels within an
hours walk of West Ed, and a taxi rules out the possibility of finding her with
a simple search." He pressed a few keys. "But I can find her." he smiled
evilly.
"How, exactly?" Mina asked.
"Well, I can get control of a few spy satellites with a half-a-metre
resolution and track her..."
"Forget it. I don't want to know." Mina rolled her eyes.
"Good idea." Darien smiled. "If we can find out what she did after she
left the mall, we'll know what direction she went in."
Mina nodded. "Okay. How soon can you get on it?"
Chris smiled. "The pictures are downloading now."
Rei gave him a kiss. "Ooh, you're going to be fun to have around if the
Scouts ever need a web-site."
Mina turned back to Ami. "Okay, so what else can we expect from this
virus."
Ami looked back at her data computer. "Well, this is where it gets really
strange." she said, tapping on it's control pad. "All that gel that takes over
the role of our blood, as we saw before whenever we were injured. However, as
it ends it's cycle, it returns the blood system to normal."
"But that's more than a few quarts of liquid. Where the hell does it go?"
Darien asked.
Chris nodded. "It's stupid to assume the most feared aliens we've heard of
so far would infect us with a virus that eventually goes away."
"This is where it gets REALLY weird." Ami continued. "It also steals most
of the body's water...right from the cells and organs."
"So we die from dehydration?" Rei asked.
Ami shook her head. "No. It leaves just enough for the body to recover."
she tapped at her computer again. "Then, it sweats out of the body, and it
turns into some weird crumbly residue."
"There's got to be more too it." Lita frowned. "Why did we go unconscious
for so long at the mall? Normally, Sailor Moon's healing power just winds
people. I never saw any of the others pass out like we did."
Mina nodded. "I don't like it. What if the Lords planned this too?"
Ami closed her computer. "Maybe the healing replaced the water we lost.
That might have knocked us out for a while."
Rei shook her head. "What if Mina's right? What if the healing actually
hurt us in some way? You can't simulate that on your computer."
Chris looked up from his computer. "What were you saying about that
'crumbly residue' again?"
Ami blinked. "Uh, well, it forms a solid when it contacts the air."
Chris put down his computer. "Just a second, I'm going to transform." he
took out his disk and transformed. Then he took off his shoe. "Check to see if
it's on this."
Ami took the shoe. "Why?" she asked, re-opening her computer.
Chris shrugged. "When we woke up, did you notice that brown stuff
underneath us?"
Ami's eyes widened. "You have some of it on your shoe."
Rei nodded. "I thought that stuff was just debris from when Serena blasted
the ice-rink's wall."
The others nodded. Andrea took something out of her pocket. "I have some
in my pocket." she smiled. "A little souvenir."
Ami pointed her computer towards the brown eggshell-like substance in
Andrea's hand. "It's both same type of residue."
Darien's hands clenched together. "So all the healing did was speed up the
process. We skipped the going crazy part, and it got it out of our systems."
Chris took his shoe and reverted back to normal clothes. "One question.
How did all that liquid solidify into a quarter-pound of egg-shell?"
Ami shrugged. "It's not possible. Unless all that liquid went some
where."
"We were on ice. If the stuff just gushed out of us, it would have made a
huge ice cake." Rei suggested. "So where the hell did it go?"
Chris turned around his computer. "This is where it went."
They all gasped as they saw a movie being played on the screen. It showed
an overhead view of the mall. Suddenly, five or six black dots jumped out of
the sunroof over the skating rink. "Who the hell was that?" Lita said after a
long silence.
"Good question." Chris said with a frown.
Ami shook her head. "That's not possible. Even accounting for all the
liquid we lost, it's not enough to make a new person."
Chris stood up. "What you're seeing is footage taken a good half hour
before we even woke up. This is from a Chinese spy satellite that is not
supposed to exist, but does. It may not exist officially, but this footage
does. What if the gel absorbed water from the air? What if the
gel was concentrated and just needed water to 'hydrate?'" he said. "For all we
know, we could have been hosts for more Lords to grow in. Those things could be
more FUCKING Lords!"
Maury went wide-eyed. "Oh shit."
Lita smiled. "Yeah, but with our new weapons, we can take them out."
"Not before they have enough time to kill a few more hundred thousand
people...or more." Rei said quietly.
They were quiet for a long time. "I don't believe this." Mina said
finally. "Can't these bastards just DIE!?!"
Chris sat back down and opened his computer quickly. "Well, we aren't
getting anywhere just sitting here. I'll try and find out where Sailor moon
went. Then, Ami can track down her signature like before."
Rei brushed a few hairs out of her eyes. "I'm going to do a fire-reading.
This is getting too frustrating."
Andrea got up. "I'm going out for pizza. If anyone wants to join me, go
ahead."
Chris sighed. "I've been watching too much 'X-Files'."
Rei patted him on the shoulder as she left. "Don't worry. I'm sure it's
nothing."
Chapter 21
"Not again." Rei begged.
Despite her protests, the vision kept going. This time it was different,
though. Chris was standing in front of someone. She couldn't make out who it
was from her vantage point, but the new person looked familiar. "Dammit! Who
are you!" she said suddenly.
To her surprise, Chris turned around to look at her. "Rei?" he said
happily.
She smiled. The dream was different somehow. She was about to run up to
him when she saw Chris' face turn from happiness to ghastly. "What's wrong?"
she asked.
Chris walked up to her. "Look behind you." he pointed with his sword.
Rei turned around to see a bright light. "What is that?" Rei asked.
"Hopefully," Chris said, "you'll never have to know." he said walking up to
her. "This is only a possible future."
Rei looked down and saw her body. "Is...that me?"
Chris nodded. "It won't be here in a few seconds."
A few seconds passed, and everything was engulfed in a white light. Rei
collapsed, feeling her stomach churn. "What happened?" she gasped, feeling the
vision fading.
Chris helped her up. "I cannot tell you...even though you already know. I
am not really Chris. In fact, this isn't one of your normal visions."
Rei looked around. "But...it feels like a vision....and...and Grandpa said
he had this type of recurring nightmare before as well." she paused, remembering
what Grandpa had said about his. "This light...it's a nuclear bomb...isn't it?"
"Don't worry." her vision smiled. "Everything will work out...just believe
in me, okay?"
FLASH!
Rei woke up, lying on her back in front of the fire. "Pluto...swords..."
she said quickly, making sure she remembered from the dream.
A minute passed. "Why can't I have NORMAL dreams like everyone else." she
sighed, then stood up.
Chris knocked on the door and came in quietly. Rei smiled and ran over to
him. "Oh thank you."
He shrugged as she gave him a warm embrace. "Uh, yeah...no problem."
Rei looked into his eyes. "Chris, I want you to practice with your
swords."
"Uh?" Chris asked. "I practice daily."
Rei shook her head. "No, I mean get to know them. I want you to know
those babies inside and out. Even if you have to bunk with that Yamato guy, I
want you to learn everything there is to know about swords."
Chris smiled. "Hell, you don't have to ask me. I was planning to anyway."
"Good thinking...but I want you to do it now." Rei said.
"Now?" Chris looked at the fire. He nodded. "Okay, okay...you don't have
to tell me twice." he smiled. "Whatever you saw in there, I'll go along with
it."
Rei kissed him. "Thank you. I know it's a strange request."
"Wait..." Chris said suddenly. "What about Sailor Moon? I mean, what if
you need me over in Edmonton?"
Rei shook her head. "I'll tell you what. We'll get some extra help.
Besides, you already found out where she went, didn't you?" she smiled.
Chris nodded, but looked concerned. "I already gave Ami the directions.
Serena's shacked out in a hotel only a block away from the mall. But I still
think that me going off on a little sword expedition is second-play to Sailor
Moon and this weird Lord thing."
Rei shook her head. "You'll have to trust me...just this once...okay?"
Chris took a deep breath, then nodded. "See ya in a few days." he walked
out. "I'll be with Yamato if you need me."
"Chris is where?" Maury asked.
Rei smiled slightly. "He's going away for a few days. We can handle
Sailor Moon in Edmonton."
Ami looked slightly worried. "But, we might need him if she goes crazy.
Our team is already missing Serena, and we can't afford another loss."
Andrea coughed. "Listen. If Chris wants to go into the country in the
middle of World War Three, then it's up to him. We should be worrying about
getting Sailor Moon back."
Darien, who didn't expect that statement to come from the little girl who
had a crush on him, almost fell out of his seat. "Uh...yeah! Thanks, Andrea.
After all, we're trying to help Serena. Not kill her or anything."
Andrea smiled. "Besides, if we need any help, we can get Sailor Pluto!"
Everyone looked at her. "Do you think that's a good idea?" Mina asked.
"Those wusses left us hanging when the Lords attacked. I'm not working
beside anyone who's from a planet farther than Saturn." Lita growled.
Andrea frowned. "*I*'m from Pluto, and *I* say she can be trusted."
Rei realized why her vision had gave her these suggestions. It looked like
Mina and Lita would veto the option to have Sailor Pluto aboard. If her vision
never happened, she probably would have sided with them. "I think maybe we
should give Pluto a second chance." she said suddenly. They all looked at her
in surprise. Rei shrugged. "It couldn't hurt to have another Scout on our side
right now."
Lita frowned. "Whatever. I'm keeping an eye on her, though."
"I'll go find her." Andrea said eagerly.
Maury got up. "I'll go too. I think I know where to find her."
Mina sighed. "Okay. You have an hour. Then, we're going to Canada
whether she's with us or not."
Andrea and Maury nodded, then were off.
Rei smiled to herself. "I hope this is enough."
Chapter 22
Darien heard the knock and knew who it was even before he opened the door.
"Hello, Andrea."
Andrea smiled guiltily. "Hi, Darien." she said, then looked him over.
"Sleeping in your clothes?"
Darien nodded. "I decided to take a nap. Mina gave Maury and you an hour,
so I decided to put it to good use." he said, letting her in. "In fact, we
should be at the temple soon."
"I know, I just wanted to talk with you before we went, though."
Darien sighed. "Here it comes..." he thought to himself.
Andrea sat down on the couch. "Nice place." she smiled warmly. "Oh, and
we got Pluto to help with the mission."
Darien sighed.
Andrea lowered her head. "Okay, okay...I'll get to the point." she took a
deep breath. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm not going to rest until you
and Serena are back together."
Darien was speechless.
Andrea smiled. "Chris convinced me, actually." she paused. "You don't
think of me as an 'Ami,' do you?"
Darien shook his head. "You mean as a homicidal maniac?"
"No." Andrea laughed. "I mean as someone always trying to win your love
when it doesn't exist for me."
Darien found something inside of him prick up at that last statement.
"Listen...Andrea..." he said suddenly. "I...DO love you...it's just that..."
Andrea got up, and headed for the door, already knowing the answer. "Don't
speak. I know what your saying." she said quietly.
"It's just that Serena and I are beyond love..." he continued. "We're like
the moon and earth." he said finally. "We are destined for each other...and I
can't imagine life without her."
Andrea smiled weakly. "So, if we weren't from the moon kingdom, I'd
probably be your love? Figures. JUST when I get super-powers, I find out that
without them, I could have gotten my dream-man."
Darien sighed. "Sorry."
Andrea shrugged. "It's not a problem. I guess I'm a little young for you,
anyway."
Darien smiled, bent over slightly, and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.
"You're only one thousand, fourteen...that IS pretty young. Let's go."
The entire team...save Sailor Moon...assembled in the forest outside of the
temple. Sailor Pluto stood quietly in the corner. Chris went over to her. "I
want you to take good care of them, okay?" he asked.
She smiled slightly. "Strike Fiss? Aren't you the same guy who pulled his
sword out at me in no less than two separate occasions?"
He smiled politely. "And I'll use it if I find any of these people didn't
survive the trip." his face got serious. "I'm asking for a favour. One which
you can call upon me to repay at any time. I am asking you to please make SURE
the Sailor Scouts are happy and healthy when they return with Sailor Moon in
their hands."
Sailor Pluto extended her hand. "I will. You can count on me."
The two shook hands. Chris smiled. "I guess in a way, you're my older
sister. You're lucky I've been so nice to you!"
Andrea smiled and joined in. "He bugs me CONSTANTLY. You've been lucky
he's only threatened to kill you TWICE!" she joked.
Rei coughed behind them, and the two Pluto's left Chris and Rei alone. Rei
walked up to Chris. "I had better plans for us during this last week." she
sighed.
Chris shrugged. "Maybe we keep having to be almost killed to appreciate
each other's company."
Rei smiled. "Don't flatter yourself. I could get just as much fun out of
a quiet weekend reading a book and going to the movies with the others."
"Well, I could get as much fun with a bowl full of lime Jell-O, three
water-balloons and access to a fourth story window above a busy urban street!!"
Chris countered with a grin.
"I'll be back as soon as I can." she winked. "I hope you learn quickly
while you're at Yamato's."
Chris gave her an evil looking grin. "I will if you promise to where that
cute shirt that says 'I've been naughty, spank me!'"
Rei shook her head. "Wellllll...." she said coyly.
"You two break it up!" Maury called over to them.
"Bite the Czar!!" Chris replied.
Rei and Chris embraced in a kiss. Then, Chris picked up his sword case and
began walking off.
"See ya later, Strike!" Mina called over to him, waving.
They all waved, and Chris was gone into the woods. Andrea sighed. "Well,
I hope he has a good time while we run after Sailor Moon, who's probably going
crazy right now."
Ami coughed slightly. "I was just thinking." she said. "What if we need
to destroy the Silver Crystal?"
They all blinked. Lita nodded. "You know...she's right. If she's going
crazy, there's no telling how she might use it."
Mina shook her head. "No. That's not an option. We know for a fact that
the crystal exists far into the future. If we destroy it, Chibi-Moon may never
have came back, and our entire present will change."
Pluto nodded. "However, the future is not a straight line."
They all looked at her.
"You see, Rini has already happened in the past. That means if we do alter
the future, little will change." she paused. "I could do it."
"Do what?" Lita asked.
"Destroy the crystal." Pluto said. "I have a weapon called the Dead
Scream. I believe you saw me use it when we were fighting the Lords."
"So? The crystal's handled more punishment than YOU and your Dead Scream
could dish out, and it's survived." Lita stated smugly.
Ami shrugged. "I don't know...her attack is based on sound. Every crystal
has a resonance frequency. If she could match that frequency, it would shatter
the crystal. Probably back into the Seven Rainbow Crystals."
Maury laughed out loud. "Ha! That crystal thing is packed full of energy.
It will either blow up like a nuclear bomb, or it's going to shatter into
millions of pieces. It's too unstable."
Rei's mind screamed when she heard Maury mention the word 'nuclear.'
"Maybe Maury's right. Destroying it should be a last resort."
Pluto nodded. "Okay, but I won't hesitate if the time comes. Agreed?"
They all nodded.
Mina nodded. "Okay, what time is it over in Edmonton?"
Ami checked her computer. "Quarter-past-noon."
"Then we leave now." Mina said. "That okay with you cats?"
Luna and Artemis nodded. Artemis looked back over to Luna. "Once their
gone...my kitten." he said smoothly.
Luna giggled like a little girl. "Ooh, Artemis, you old romantic."
The Scouts all rolled back their eyes.
"SAILOR TELEPORT!
Chapter 23
Chris sat on the bench as Henry Yamato loaded coal into a long trough near
his furnace. "So." the old man said. "You're here for me to teach you." he
kept scurrying about his workbench like he wasn't even talking. "I thought I
taught you plenty back on Saturn."
"You did a good job." Chris smiled. "But I need to know more."
The old man stopped scurrying around and took up a seat next to his
student. "I'm not sure I can. I've only started remembering tidbits since you
got your sword back from me."
Chris sighed. "Please? I can get you a free pass to the Smithsonian
museum!"
Yamato looked at him strange. "Why on Earth would I want to go there?"
Chris cocked his head. "Oh, I dunno..." he smiled evilly. "Maybe because
of their collection of swords. One of the largest in the world outside of
Japan...and they have some REALLY old ones."
Yamato smiled eagerly. "You have yourself a teacher." he said quickly.
Chris smiled. "And you have yourself a student."
He stroked his chin. "First of all," he smiled. "We're going to have to
go on a little field trip."
"Sounds good." Chris nodded. "When do we leave?"
"Now." Yamato said simply, putting out his forge with a bucket of water.
Chris watched in amazement as he picked up a tattered coat and walked out the
door of his shop.
"Mmm. I wonder if all these weird, old spiritual masters have to pass a
test to see if they're weird enough first." Chris shrugged. "Cool." he picked
up his sword case and book bag, then followed.
Serena was much more cautious this time. Because of the damage caused to
the West Edmonton Mall, it had been closed for at least a week or two. It gave
the police time to wrap things up too. She had decided to go to a less public
shopping centre. Chances were that Chris, Maury and Andrea would only really
know the larger malls. Then...if they were foolish enough to try again...they
would be on equal terms.
At least she had purified her friends back to normal. Now, maybe they
would respect her wish to be alone.
"Yes, I'd like to try on these three blouses." she said to the clerk.
The clerk nodded happily. "Changing room is that way, miss." she said,
pointing towards the back corner of the clothing store.
Serena smiled happily and took the clothes to the back.
Andrea smiled to herself as she passed by the shop. "I have her. Change
room three. Let's get her."
Chris' directions placed them on the same block as Serena. Ami was finally
able to get a lock on the Silver Crystal, and her computer did the rest. They
had been searching the small complex for only a half an hour when Andrea finally
found her.
"Shall we?" Maury said smugly.
They all nodded. Pluto stood by watching...careful not to get
overconfident. "Remember what's at stake. If the virus is in it's later
stages, she could already be crazy."
Maury shrugged. "Well, she seemed pretty mental back at West Ed. If
that's as crazy as she will get, they I doubt we'll have too much trouble."
Ami coughed. "Well, my computer is usually pretty accurate when analyzing
things like viruses. I don't think we should just rush into this."
Darien ran his hand through his hair. "I hate to say this, but how exactly
are we going to do this? I mean, we can't just transform in front of all these
people. Plus, what if she uses civilians as hostages or something?"
"Well," Maury thought for a second... "I guess we could always transform in
the middle of the hallway. That should clear the area pretty fast."
"Yeah...and Sailor Moon will know we're here." Mina pointed out.
Serena walked out of the change room, carrying her garments over to the
counter. The other Scouts all noticed, and hid before she could notice the
group standing outside the store. "I'll get these three." she said happily to
the clerk.
The clerk nodded happily and began ringing in the prices.
Serena looked around idly, trying to decide what store to go to next.
"The total comes to fifty-six, eighteen." the clerk announced.
Serena frowned. "Wait a second..." she looked at the clothes and their
attached price tags. "The total is only fifty-TWO fifty!!" she scowled at the
clerk menacingly. "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!!!! YOU TRIED TO
OVERCHARGE ME FOUR BUCKS!!!" she yelled at the top of her lungs.
The clerk looked at the clothes and at the cash register read-out.
"What??? I never!!"
Serena continued her icy glare. "You better apologize right FUCKING now if
you want to see the light of another day!"
The clerk looked terrified. "I swear!! I never overcharged you!!! Here!
Take em! They're free! Just..."
"oh no!" Serena laughed evilly to herself. "You're not going to get away
THAT easily!" she picked up the cash register and flung it at the clerk's head,
barely missing. "I SAID APOLOGIZE!"
Everything was quiet. The other people in the store were gawking wide-eyed
at Serena, who looked like she was about to kill the clerk.
Outside, Mina sighed. "So much for her not being crazy yet."
The clerk pointed to the receipt quickly. "Wait! Wait! Here...l-l-look
here..."
Serena frowned, picking up the receipt the woman had given her.
"You see, it's just sales tax!"
Serena looked at the receipt, and sure enough, it showed that she wasn't
being ripped off. "Oh..." she smiled sheepishly. "Sorry." she took her bag of
clothes, and walked out like nothing had happened.
Mina whispered to the others. "We're going to have to wait until..."
Maury suddenly jumped up and began running for Serena. "I'm not a patient
man."
Serena heard Maury's footsteps, and turned around as he tackled her against
the ground. Lita had taken Maury's cue, and was over her head, holding down her
arms. "Now what!!??" she asked desperately.
Pluto transformed suddenly. "We have to destroy the crystal." she said,
now with her key-staff.
Serena gasped. "You all said you'd leave me alone!!!!"
Darien stepped in front of Pluto. "No! We can't destroy the crystal!
That will kill Serena AND everyone in this part of the city!"
Pluto shook her head. "You saw how crazy she was! There's nothing
stopping her from destroying the Earth!"
Serena had managed to get a punch in at Maury. "Hurry up guys! She's
trying to get loose!"
Mina and Rei ran over to grab a hold of Serena's limbs. "Shit! Maury! I
told you we weren't ready! Now we have no idea what to do!!" Mina growled.
Maury frowned. "Sorrreeeeee."
Darien grabbed a rose from his jacket. "She is NOT going to die...not
now...not this way. You're NOT going to destroy the crystal."
Pluto took a step back. "Listen to yourself! You're risking an entire
planet of people to save your girlfriend! I don't care if it's true love...
that's pretty damn selfish!" she said, keeping a firm grip on her staff.
Andrea placed her hand on Pluto's shoulder "Pluto...Darien's right. This
isn't the way. We can't destroy..."
"SHUT-up." She turned to her little sister. "I don't expect you to
understand. This is bigger than us...bigger than the city. We're talking the
entire EARTH here."
Serena began to scream. Shoppers were running away as fast as they could.
The tension was thick enough to bite. "Put down your staff." Darien said with
an unblinking eye.
"Grrrr!" Maury 'grrred'. "Would you three shut up and do something!!!!"
Lita took a deep breath. "Allow me." she punched Serena's jaw.
Serena's head hit the floor, knocking her out cold. Everything was quiet.
Pluto took the moment of silence to aim her staff at Serena. "Get out of the
way."
Andrea realized she was about to fire. "NO!" she said, jumping into
Pluto's line of fire. "You will NOT destroy this city."
Pluto gasped. Her sister...from back on Pluto...was now standing in front
of her weapon. "Andrea...please...get out of the way!" she ordered.
Andrea frowned. "No. This isn't the way to beat the Lords. There may be
more...remember? If we kill Sailor Moon, then what chance will three Sailor
Scouts have against six new Lords?" she looked her older sister directly in the
eye. "Just THINK about it! Don't be so quick to doubt us! We still might be
able to do something!"
Pluto paused for a long thirty seconds. She then lowered her head, and
slammed her staff into the floor in frustration. "Fine. But if Earth becomes
another lifeless chunk of rock in the Solar System, I'm holding you all
responsible."
"Serena isn't a Lord. No mater what they did to you in the past, you can't
take it out on her." Andrea said quietly to her sister.
Everyone nodded quickly. Darien gave his thanks through a smile. Maury
got up and helped Lita to her feet as well. "Okay, now, we've touched Serena,
so we might be infected again. Can we go back to the temple? Then, at least we
wont have all these weirdoes looking at us."
Everyone gathered around Sailor Moon. Andrea smiled toward Pluto, but
Pluto just frowned as they teleported back to Tokyo.
Chapter 24
"Now, if I remember," Yamato started "you never used your attack in the
morning. Any reason for that?"
Chris shrugged. "Well, now that you mention it, most of the bad-guys have
attacked at night."
Yamato nodded.
"However...I DID use my attack in Edmonton...and that time I fought against
Zoicite, I used my attack." Chris added.
"Mmm, I specifically remember telling you to only use it at night." Yamato
sighed.
Chris sat back on the tree. They had hiked out into the woods so Chris
could show him his attack. To the left lay the sparking stumps of trees that
had been hit by the energy-disk. "I remember too. Who had the sword before me,
anyway?"
Yamato smiled. "Me, actually. Then before that, who knows...probably a
knight's sword or something."
Chris smiled. "Cool."
Yamato smiled. "Yes. Humbling, isn't it? Knowing you carry around
something so ancient."
Chris looked at his sword. "Wow, and it doesn't look a day over thirty
thousand."
They both looked up into the night sky. "Ah, so which one's Saturn?"
Fiss pointed. "I think it's that one to the left of the moon...see?"
"Ah." his mentor nodded. "Through that little hole in that leaf."
Chris looked curiously. "Hole?"
Right above him, in one of the trees, there was a dime-sized hole in a
leaf. It was perfectly round, and he could see Saturn though it when he lined
up his eye to it. "That's weird..." Chris frowned.
Yamato nodded. "I'll tell you what..." he said, climbing the tree. "I'm
going to hold out another leaf. You do your attack again. Right where you were
standing before."
Chris waited until the old man had climbed the tree and was ready. He held
a leaf out, covering the hole in the first leaf.
Chris pulled out his second sword. "Okay, let's go!" he brought them
around and over his head. "Rock N ROLL!" he shouted, firing them off in another
blue blade of energy.
Once the slash had impacted in a far-off mountain, Chris looked up to the
leaf. There was now a hole in it too.
"This is weird."
Yamato nodded. He slid down the tree. "Okay, first of all, I didn't see
anything make the hole. It just suddenly...happened. Right when you pulled out
your second sword."
Chris looked at it. "Wait...do you think it's like a lightning rod?"
Yamato shrugged. "I dunno...like a receiver from Saturn?"
Chris nodded. "I know it sounds impossible...after all, a beam connecting
anything on Saturn to my sword would have to travel faster than light...but what
if it does somehow."
"But, you've used it indoors, haven't you?"
"Yeah...and I haven't noticed any holes in the roof or anything."
Yamato paused. "I remember back on Saturn that I used the katana like you
do...to make that blue 'swish' attack...but I don't remember ever using the
second sword with it."
"Maybe..." Chris smiled as the truth hit him. "Maybe it's a battery!"
Yamato frowned. "What?"
"See?" Chris showed him by pointing to Saturn. "Whenever Saturn is in
range, a beam of power comes down from the planet, and hit's my wakizashi.
Then, it transfers power to the katana for the attack when the two make the big
arc of energy."
"So?" Yamato blinked.
"So, if I'm indoors, or on the opposite side of the Earth and out of range
of Saturn, it sends a reserve-jolt of power to the katana instead!" Chris said
happily. "Weeee! I reverse-engineered the sword of the past!"
Yamato smiled. "Sounds good to me...I'm just wondering why it doesn't just
send you a jolt of power when you transform. Why only as you attack? What
prevents it from 'recharging' anytime it's not in use?"
Chris blinked. "Mmm, that's a good question." He looked at his sword.
"I...I suppose it really doesn't matter. I mean, I've seen this sucker work in
every situation almost any way I needed it to at the time. It's almost like it
adapts to me."
"That makes sense." Yamato nodded, looking out over the sky. "I always
thought that sword was like a part of you. Should be natural to control, even
if you don't realize it." he turned back to Chris. "But just how powerful IS
it?"
Fiss sighed and sheathed it. "I hope I don't have to find out."
"Well, what do we do now?" Lita asked.
Everyone paced around Serena, who was currently tied up in a chair. Rei
shrugged. "I guess we should just let the virus run it's course."
Mina nodded. "Ami, are you absolutely positive that she'll be okay? I
mean, if we let the virus do it's thing, then will she live?"
Ami nodded. "I've ran thirty simulations with as many variables as I can
imagine. The only way she'll die is if she's in an oven without water when it
happens."
Darien turned around, pacing quietly. "Ami, could you run some more...just
to be sure?"
Ami nodded and started tapping away at her computer some more.
Andrea walked over to where Sharon was sitting. Her older sibling had been
quiet ever since they got back. "You okay?" Andrea asked.
Sharon nodded. "Yeah...I'm just thinking."
Hooze sat down next to her on the couch. "Yeah? What about?"
"I don't know..." Pluto smiled. "I guess you just hit a nerve when you
connected Sailor Moon to the Lords."
Andrea nodded slowly. "So...what DID the Lords do?" she paused. "I mean,
you've been saying how horrible they are and everything...but you never said WHY
they were so horrible."
"You don't call three thousand dead and fifty injured 'horrible'?" Sharon
asked quickly. "Remember? They blew up the mall as well as the crowd
massacre."
Andrea blinked. "Oh...oh yeah." she pushed the thought to the back of her
mind. "So...what did they do in the past?"
Pluto sighed deeply. "If you don't remember...then you're lucky."
Andrea rolled back her eyes. "Okay, I can see you're too dramatic right
now to tell me...so I'm going to get a sandwich." she smiled and left Pluto
alone with her thoughts.
It was just past two in the morning when Ami screamed, waking everyone up.
"Hurry! It's Serena!" she explained as everyone rushed into the spare room.
Serena was nowhere to be seen. In her place stood a large, egg-like
formation. It was brown, and looked like the stuff they had found in Edmonton.
Darien looked away, almost hyperventilating.. "Oh god...I hope she's alright."
Andrea, sensing Darien's fear, walked over to Ami. "Quick. Scan it and
make sure she's okay inside."
Ami nodded quickly. She was visibly shaken. "It was like a shell just
sprung out from her body. It happened so fast!"
Maury, yawning off his last bit of sleep, shrugged. "I thought you said it
just 'sweated' out through the pours?"
Lita nodded. "This is weird. Do you think this is what happened to us?"
she shivered. "I'm glad we were unconscious at the time."
Andrea shrugged. "Man, where's my sister? Maybe she can remember what
this shell thing does."
Mina sighed. "All I want is for Sailor Moon to heal everyone once again,
and then Artemis and Luna....just to make SURE it's finally gone."
Everyone's eyes went wide. "Where are the cats??" Rei asked.
Pluto had not heard the scream. It wasn't really because she was in a
separate room, but rather because a thin shell of dirt-brown shell had formed
around her. And as the other Sailor Scouts began worrying about the cats and
Serena, a crack formed on it's surface. Within seconds, a hand broke free...and
began to claw it's way out.
To be continued...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Strike Fiss here! Now, as you
know by now, this is the re-formatted, slightly smoother, and nicer looking
version of AR 3. And I USUALLY replace the little ranting at the end with a new
one, but I loved AR 3's rant sooooooo much, I had to keep it! ^_^ Enjoy!
-Fiss
That's all for AR #3. But, as you can probably guess by the cliff-hanger at the
end, the story is FAR from over! HAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA! YAARGH! I am evil!
What is with Rei's strange dreams, and why has she insisted Sharon's involvement
and Chris' practice?? Will Sharon survive her virus? More importantly, will
the title-figure, Sailor Moon survive too? After all, the others were able to
recover thanks to the Moon Healing Activation...but Serena and Sharon aren't so
lucky!! And what the HELL were the 6 figures escaping from the mall back in
Edmonton??? Were they Lords...or something even MORE sinister!?! Ooooh,
spooky! Will Andrea ever get to kill someone in a fight? *smile* You'll see!
Next time on...
SAILOR MOON: ALTERNATE REALITY!!!!!!
Sorry this one took so long. The first draft was horrible, so I had to make
sure this one was up to the scale as the first 2 stories. Also, final exams
don't help the matter. I haven't had enough free time lately! ARRRGHHH! As
always, send all your E-Mail, good or bad, to
strikef@bigfoot.com
I enjoy receiving E-Mail as I am a hermit, and don't do much else than read your
E-Mail! Wheeee! Just kidding. I also enjoy collecting moss! Wheeeeeeeeeee!
Oh, and banana-slugs! So, anyway, please E-Mail me, even if you really thought
my stories BITE! Even if you thought they were so FREAKIN horrible that you
PUKED and short-circuited your keyboard with your bile! EVEN if you thought it
was so INSANELY DISAPPOINTING that you woke up in the morning with a severed
head in your hand, and recalled little of the night before except that you
joined the local mafia! ANYWAY...did I mention E-Mail me?
Okay, bucko...that's IT! E-MAIL ME RIGHT FREAKIN NOW BEFORE I HAVE TO HUNT
YOU DOWN AND DROOL ON YOUR FACE! SKEEEETOES!! I PEE BULLETS!
Sorry, I drank too much tea today. *grin*
Check out my fan-fic website for all the latest, and older stories I have
written.
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/9110
Goodnight, and may the force be with you! If not the force...then the weird bug
that keeps circling my head. AAHHHH! Swat it QUICK! IT'S RIPPING MY FLESH
OFF! ARRGHH! YOUR FIREARMS ARE USELESS! SAVE YOURSELF! DON'T BE THE HERO!
ARRHGHJGHDHGSDHGH....
Okay...I'm done now. Tea is wearing off. Hooray! AR 4 should be out soon.
Stay tuned!
e-mail: strikef@bigfoot.com
homepage1: www.studioshinnyo.com
homepage2: www.geocities.com/Tokyo/9110
Strike Fiss, Studio Shinnyo 2000. Khattam-Shud, EOF.
(
geocities.com/tokyo/9110) (
geocities.com/tokyo)